Corporate travellers are increasingly opting for business class when flying to Asia, with the region leading the world in year-on-year growth for premium travel.
Data by the flagship corporate travel businesses of Flight Centre Travel Group, FCM Travel and Corporate Traveller, revealed that Malaysia (31%), Hong Kong (19%), India (18%), Philippines (9%), and China (8.8%) were growth standouts for 2H2024 versus 2H2023.
From Australia and New Zealand, the top three destinations showing growth in business class bookings are Malaysia, India, and Hong Kong. Travellers from the Americas are also increasingly choosing business class for their Asian journeys, with Singapore, Thailand, and India leading the way in growth. Similarly, from the UK, the top three destinations for business class growth into Asia are Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia.
“Asia has two massive benefits for business travellers. Not only is trade critical with the likes of China, Hong Kong, and India for companies worldwide, but it also acts as the transit gateway that connects the Northern and Southern Hemisphere,” said Bertrand Saillet, managing director of FCM Travel Asia.
“Through our Meetings & Events business, we’ve also seen an uptick in Asia being the destination of choice for conferences, with the region centrally located for those coming from London, New York, or Sydney – the geographic location is of real benefit.”
He pointed out that Asia is now the world’s second-most integrated trade region, after the European Union, where in 2022, nearly 57% of the value of Asia’s trade originated within the region, up from 54%t in 2000.
According to McKinsey & Company, between 2017 and 2023, trade between the US and China fell, but South-east Asia emerged as a “connector” between these two economies. In this period, Southeast Asian imports from China surged, while Southeast Asian exports increasingly went to the US.
In the case of Vietnam, the value of imports from China doubled – an addition of US$50 billion – and its exports to the US increased by US$60 billion. A similar, although less pronounced, trend can be seen in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.
“It’s no coincidence that the growth in business class to these destinations has coincided with the continued return of capacity into Asia region-wide from origins worldwide – choice and competition are the catalysts to greater availability and lower airfares.
“Trade will be in the spotlight in 2025 with a Donald Trump Administration, but the one thing that won’t change is the critical nature of business travel for companies that know it’s a necessity rather than a luxury, and that it’s a key facet to surviving and thriving,” Saillet noted.
