Chinanews.com, February 25th. According to New Zealand's Skyway.com, the outbreak has caused a sharp decline in the number of Chinese tourists, and local Chinese have also been cautious to go out to avoid going to public places. Many Chinese restaurants in New Zealand have suffered a cold spell.

Dragon Restaurant, a Chinese restaurant in Wellington, hopes that residents will overcome their fears and enjoy the food at the restaurant. Store manager Shuping Chen said that now they are losing about NZ $ 5,000 per week, which was the peak business season at this time in previous years, but now it is deserted. To attract customers, she quickly launched a series of promotions, including discounts for corporate customers and hand sanitizers for shoppers.

"Welcome to the store, we have delicious food and good service, we have no problem." Chen said, "We don't want them to worry about Chinese food or Chinese people."

Her words represent the voice of New Zealand Chinese food operators. Another restaurant owner said his business was down 50%.

Vivian Wong is the owner of Madam Kwong, a Chinese restaurant in Christchurch. But with the ban on Chinese travellers and fear of the epidemic, passenger traffic has halved.

Wong said that tourism is a pillar industry in New Zealand, and he hopes that the government will increase publicity. There are no confirmed cases in New Zealand. In addition, racism and a lack of understanding of the virus are also one of the reasons people stay away from Chinese restaurants.

Dragon Boat in Auckland is a seafood restaurant that is very popular with Chinese tourists. But store manager Ricky Wang said that they can now only rely on the support of local diners and the business is greatly affected.

"I hope that local customers will not be afraid (of viruses) ... we welcome all customers," she said.

Some people even think that the virus is more likely to be infected in Chinese restaurants. Mike Egan, head of the Restaurant Association, said the claim was unfounded.

"Whether you are in a Chinese restaurant, a Western restaurant, or a shopping mall supermarket, you will be in contact with people (saying that Chinese restaurants are easily contagious) is unfair. No one in New Zealand is currently infected with the new crown virus." Dining at the store is their best support.