MasterCard Worldwide has released results of its MasterIndex of Travel survey report on business and personal travel trends among the urban middle class across 13 Asian markets.

According to Dr. Yuwa Hedrick-Wong, economic advisor to MasterCard Worldwide in Asia Pacific, "China's importance as a business travel destination is a simple reflection of the role it plays in being a key hub in an increasingly efficient Pan-Asia Supply Chain, as well as, its rapidly expanding domestic market. In this regard, business travel to China is a 'positive sum game' that also benefits the rest of the region – a rising need to travel to China for business purposes generates an additional need to travel to the rest of the region as well."

For business travelers, 88% frequently visited more destinations in the Asia Pacific region, above that of Europe (12%) and North America (11%) in the past 12 months. China (28%, the same as the previous two periods) and Singapore (19% vs. 20% six months ago) continue to remain top destinations for business travelers. Hong Kong (15% vs. 16% six months ago) and Japan (14% vs. 12% six months ago) follow closely behind. The markets with the highest percentage of respondents traveling for business remain fairly consistent, with Thailand (35%, same as six months ago) heading the list followed closely by Hong Kong (34% vs. 17% six months ago) and Singapore (33% vs. 32% six months ago). Compared to the historical average and to a lesser extent, a period ago, Hong Kongers, Mainland Chinese, Vietnamese and Koreans are travelling more for business, while Indonesians and Malaysians have begun to travel less.

China consumers continue to be very optimistic as they had been in most of its twenty MasterIndex surveys except during the Asian Crisis between 4Q 1997 and 4Q 1998 when its MasterIndex hovered in the fifties and low sixties. Its current MasterIndex of 78.2 is slightly below both its period ago and year ago indices (82.3 each). It is however higher than the market historical average of 73.8 and ten of the market's previous indices.

Like its country total, current consumer sentiments in Beijing (80.8 vs 82.4 period ago vs 80.2 year ago), Shanghai (77.3 vs 80.6 vs 77.1) and Guangzhou (77.2 vs 84.3 vs 91.3) remain very optimistic, though generally slightly weaker than preceding periods. Despite this, current consumer confidence in all three urban centers is slightly stronger than historically. (Beijing 80.8 vs 71.0; Shanghai 77.3 vs 75.6; Guangzhou 77.2 vs 74.0).

Respondents overall continued to name destinations in the Asia Pacific region as their top choice for personal travel, above destinations in Europe and North American.

Regionally 36% of respondents said that they have traveled internationally in the past 12 months. This is exactly the same as a period ago and a year ago. As previously, Thais (72%) followed by Hong Kongers (64%) and Singaporeans (60%) continue to top the list of personal travelers in the past 12 months, as they have for the past four surveys.

Regionally, corporate travel departments continue to play the most important role in making travel arrangements for business travelers.

A total of 5,401 consumers from 13 markets participated in the survey. Fieldwork was conducted between May 15 and June 1, 2006, with a sample of 400 or more consumers in each of the markets.