Jan 31 (Nikkei) - Asian airlines, already fighting stiff competition, now face more turbulence as the spreading coronavirus triggers fears of a repeat of the SARS-induced industry slump in 2003.
On Thursday, Japan's ANA Holdings became the latest Asian airline to warn of a fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, which has spread to at least 15 countries from China in the past month, infecting more than 7,700 people and killing 170.
"Bookings for flights from China have fallen by half" from a year earlier for the month of February, ANA Executive Vice President Ichiro Fukuzawa told a news conference.
Bookings for flights to China from Japan have also dropped 40%, he added. The company, however, kept its earnings outlook unchanged for now, saying that it would keep an eye on the situation.
Analysts have been predicting a drop in passenger traffic, as people stayed home and avoid business trips for fear of catching the virus on flights and in crowded airports.
China's "Big Three" -- Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines -- are the hardest hit by the outbreak, according to Paul Yong, analyst at Singapore's DBS Group Holdings.
Data from flight tracking website Flightradar24 show almost 20% of domestic flights are being cancelled as Beijing imposes a lockdown on some cities, a Nikkei analysis finds.
