Vietnamese airlines have cut all flights to China, stopped 34 per cent of flights to Taiwan and 92 per cent of flights to Hong Kong as of February 26.— Photo vov.vn

HÀ NỘI — As aviation companies continue to struggle because of Covid-19, other areas of transport are also being hit hard.

Minister of Transport Nguyễn Văn Thể chaired a meeting to evaluate the damage of the industry due to the epidemic on Thursday.

Director of Civil Aviation Authority of Việt Nam (CAAV) Đinh Việt Thắng said the aviation industry had declined sharply since the end of January.

Vietnamese airlines have cut all flights to China, stopped 34 per cent of flights to Taiwan and 92 per cent of flights to Hong Kong as of February 26.

In South Korea, Vietnamese carriers cut their flights by 41 per cent.

Assessing the possible scenarios, the CAAV director said in the best case if the disease is controlled before April, the total market will reach 67 million visitors, down 15.4 per cent compared to last year.

If the disease is not controlled before June, carriers might have to cancel all flights to and from Korea and the total market would only be 61.2 million passengers, down 22.6 per cent compared to last year with 79.1 million.

In order to support Vietnamese airlines, the authority proposed the Ministry of Transport report to the Government for supporting aviation services.

CAAV also requested the Ministry of Transport ask Government to assign the Ministry of Finance to exempt import tax and environmental protection tax for flight fuels within three months.

In case of difficulty balancing the budget, the director asked for 50 per cent reduction of import tax and environmental protection tax on flight fuels.

It should also consider allowing businesses to extend the time for paying taxes and budget contributions, and easing entry visa policy for international guests, he asked.

The output of road freight last month decreased by 6.4 per cent, passenger volume decreased by 16.3 per cent compared to January and by 5.9 per cent over the same period last year, said Nguyễn Văn Huyện, Director General of the Directorate for Roads of Việt Nam.

Deputy director of the Việt Nam Maritime Administration Hoàng Hồng Giang, said import and export activities decreased sharply as many large markets such as China had fallen, shipping goods on sea or activities of port and warehouse businesses were also affected.

For maritime transport, cargo output decreased by 30 per cent compared to January.

Passenger volume decreased by 17.8 per cent and 3.4 per cent respectively, the deputy director reported.

“Domestic marine shipping enterprises are at risk of lacking input supply for production and business activities,” he said.

Representative of Việt Nam Railway Authority also acknowledged that the domestic railway was seriously affected because fewer passengers are travelling.

Statistics showed railway passenger output decreased by 45 per cent last month compared to January and down 47.4 per cent over the same period last year.

Realising the epidemic situation will be still complicated, the Minister of Transport asked companies to have full masks and antiseptic solution for passengers as well as drivers.

The minister requested the entire transport industry to unite to overcome the common difficulties, ensure the normal circulation of goods, and meet the production and business demands of enterprises and the whole economy in accordance with the direction of the Prime Minister. — VNS