Hotel Shilla CEO asks China to encourage tours to S. Korea

BEIJING, June 30 (Yonhap) -- The CEO of South Korea's Hotel Shilla Co., Lee Boo-jin, has asked Chinese officials to encourage citizens to make trips to South Korea, the company said Tuesday, as the MERS outbreak shows signs of easing in the country.

Lee has been on a visit to Beijing and Shanghai this week during which she met with top executives of state-run travel firms, including CTS and CYTS, as well as officials from China's foreign ministry, Hotel Shilla said in a statement.

During the meetings, Lee "explained the situation in South Korea and asked them to encourage Chinese tourists to visit South Korea," the statement said.

South Korea reported its first outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome on May 20. Since then, the virus has killed 33 people and infected 182, marking the largest outbreak outside Saudi Arabia.

In the latest sign that MERS is subsiding, no new cases have been reported in South Korea for three consecutive days.

South Korea's tourism industry has been hit as many foreign tourists have canceled their trips to South Korea due to the outbreak of MERS.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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