China launches ‘visa-free era’ with Southeast Asia. Will travel retail boom?

What happened:
On January 28, Thailand and China agreed to waive visa requirements for each other’s citizens starting on March 1. Under the arrangement, Chinese and Thai passport holders will be able to travel to the other’s country for up to 30 days, replacing the temporary visa scheme that was launched last September.

"This visa-free era will bring people-to-people exchanges to a new height," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a press conference.

On January 25, China and Singapore similarly signed a mutual 30-day visa-free entry agreement, set to come into effect on February 9, the day before Chinese New Year. The announcement became a trending topic on Weibo, attracting over 309 million views that day.

The Jing Take:
The news comes as China gears up for its busiest annual period of mass migration: the Spring Festival. While the majority of trips take place within the country — CCTV expects 9 billion domestic trips to be made between January 26 and March 5 — overseas travel is also on the rise.

China's aviation authorities have arranged more than 2,500 additional international flights to accommodate the 40-day travel rush, including 600 flights to Thailand and 150 to Singapore.