Hong Kong airport to ban transit travellers from places at high risk of Covid-19

Air passengers from so-called Group A, or designated high-risk countries, are set to be banned from transiting through Hong Kong International Airport, according to people familiar with the matter, another move in the financial hub's aggressive effort to shield itself from Omicron. Airport officials recently briefed carriers about the plan, the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are not yet public. The suspension will start on Saturday and run through Feb 14, though the end date will be subject to review, one of the people said. Procedures for how the ban will operate are still to be laid out, another person said. While traffic volumes are thin now due to the pandemic, the move is likely to disproportionately affect Cathay Pacific Airways, the city's flagship carrier that handles the vast majority of passenger transfers. Prior to Covid-19, Hong Kong was a busy hub for transits from mainland China, Taiwan and several other areas in the region, as well as long hauls such as the United States and Britain. There are around 150 countries and territories in Hong Kong's Group A list, including the eight nations that have specific route flight bans in place due to Covid-19 cases on board. Those eight are Australia, Canada, France, India, the Philippines, Pakistan, Britain and the US. "Cathay Pacific's cash burn may increase in Q1 as its capacity is cut further due to Hong Kong's border restrictions. But it may have sufficient liquidity to withstand this, with HK$7.8b in government loans still undrawn," said Sharon Chen, a BI credit analyst.<br/>