[ti:Many Companies Suspending Business Trips Because of Coronavirus] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Big companies are trying to keep their employees healthy by banning business trips. [00:08.72]The decision, however, has been a hard blow to the travel industry, [00:15.68]which has already been suffering because of the effects of the new coronavirus. [00:24.28]Amazon, the American-based online business, has told its nearly 800,000 workers [00:32.92]to postpone any unnecessary travel within the United States or around the world. [00:42.64]Swiss food company Nestle told its 291,000 employees worldwide [00:51.16]to limit local business travel and stop all international travel until March 15. [01:00.68]France's L'Oréal, maker of beauty products, employs 86,000 people. [01:08.16]It has announced a travel ban until March 31. [01:13.72]Major business gatherings, like the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, have also been canceled. [01:23.00]On Tuesday, Facebook confirmed it will not attend the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas. [01:32.60]The event is supposed to start on March 13. [01:37.80]In addition, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank [01:43.48]have announced they will replace their spring meetings in Washington with an online event. [01:52.52]Robin Ottaway is president of Brooklyn Brewery. [01:57.12]He canceled a trip to Seoul and Tokyo last week. [02:01.92]He has suspended all travel to Asia and canceled a planned trip this month to Copenhagen. [02:09.64]"I wasn't worried about getting sick. I'm a healthy 46-year-old man," Ottaway said. [02:17.08]"My only worry was getting stuck in Asia or quarantined after returning to the U.S. [02:25.12]And I'd hate to be a spreader of the virus." [02:30.48]The cancellations and travel restrictions are hurting the travel industry. [02:36.60]Business travel makes up around 26 percent of the total travel spending, [02:43.80]or around $1.5 trillion per year, notes the Global Business Travel Association. [02:54.40]The association estimates the virus is costing the business travel industry $47 billion per month. [03:03.92]"It's a big deal," said Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry expert. [03:10.76]He estimates that airline companies get 55 percent of their money from business travelers [03:18.36]because they often sit in pricier business or first-class seats. [03:25.60]Numbers from the Airlines Reporting Corporation show that airline ticket sales [03:31.80]fell about 9 percent in late February, compared with a year earlier. [03:38.88]Hotel operators are also worried about decreases in business travel. [03:45.16]In the United States, hotels are expected to earn $46 billion from business travel this year, [03:54.40]said the travel research service Phocuswright. [03:59.12]No one believes that is possible now. [04:03.00]In the week through February 22, hotel occupancy rates in San Francisco were down 11 percent, [04:12.68]noted STR, a company that researches hotel usage. [04:18.84]Several major companies pulled out of the city's cybersecurity conference, which began in February. [04:27.24]Some observers say it is wise for companies to postpone or cancel travel before things get worse. [04:36.00]Worldwide, the coronavirus has sickened over 90,000 people. [04:42.08]More than 3,000 have died from COVID-19, the disease resulting from the virus. [04:51.00]Kevin Mitchell is chairman of the Business Travel Coalition. [04:56.20]He is an expert in the ways large companies and governments can control travel costs. [05:03.40]He notes that if a company puts an employee at risk, "you can be held responsible for their injury or death." [05:12.56]I'm Susan Shand. [05:14.40]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM