Pursuits
Weaker Yuan Adds to Headwinds Facing Chinese Online Travel Sites
- Currency's weakening will make overseas travel less affordable
- Shares of market leaders Ctrip and Tuniu decline in New York
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If a slowing economy and intensifying competition weren’t putting enough pressure on Chinese travel websites, now the industry faces another potential obstacle to growth: a weaker local currency.
The government’s decision to allow markets greater sway in setting the yuan’s exchange rate triggered the biggest selloff in more than two decades. Trip-booking sites from Ctrip.com International Ltd. to Tuniu Corp., which have profited from the nation’s boom in overseas travel, slumped last week on concern consumers may be less inclined to go abroad with the currency worth less overseas.