Singapore, Sept 17: The corporate travel market is recovering more quickly than leisure travel in Asia but a fresh outbreak of the deadly SARS virus would set back the revival, a leading travel management firm has said. Asian tourism was hit hard by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in April and May and the discovery of a new case in Singapore last week -- the world's first reported infection in three months -- sparked fears of a resurgence in the disease.

SARS infected an estimated 8,500 people in 30 countries and killed over 800.
"It would be a concern if there was another massive outbreak, which would create immense uncertainty," said Geoffrey Marshall, Carlson Wagonlit Travel's president for the Asia Pacific and Latin America regions.

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"During the SARS crisis, Singapore and Hong Kong were both badly affected with sales volumes down by as much as 70 per cent," he told reporters.

"Now we are tracking at the same level as last year and by the end of the year, we anticipate growth with some markets forecast to be 17 per cent above last year," Marshall said. Bureau Report