Coronavirus: Trade impact of COVID-19 on India can be $ 348 billion, say airport operators

The trade impact of the coronavirus epidemic for India - that is sweeping the world- is estimated to be about the US $ 348 million, according to Association of Private Airport Operators (APAO).

Estimates published by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) recently said that the slowdown of manufacturing in China due to the COVID-19 outbreak is disrupting world trade and could result in a $50 billion decrease in exports across global value chains.

In a letter to Civil Aviation secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola, APAO secretary-general Satyan Nayar, the Asia-Pacific region is suffering the highest impact, with passenger traffic volumes down by 24 % for the first quarter of 2020, compared to forecasted traffic levels without COVID-19.

"Against this gloomy background of sharp declines in traffic and passenger throughput, airports' aeronautical revenues and non-aeronautical revenues are rendering similar declines," Nayar wrote.

The ACI World Airport Traffic Forecasts 2019-2040 projects revenue loss owing to COVID-19 to the tunes of US $3 billion, the letter states.

Cancellation of flights by various international and domestic carriers - a measure by airlines to save operational expense in response to muted passenger demand - has impacted the ATM-related revenues for airports, reduced number of passengers has impacted the passenger related revenues.