Hong Kong, Feb 16 (IANS): Hong Kong Disneyland Resort has recorded its first annual loss since 2011, the media reported on Tuesday.

Its latest financial report shows it fell $148 million Hong Kong dollars ($19 million) for the fiscal year ending October last year, the China Daily reported.

Revenue also fell 6.4 percent to 5.11 billion Hong Kong dollars, the park's first year-on-year decline in income since 2009. It made a profit of $332 Hong Kong dollars million in 2014.

Andrew Kam, its managing director, blamed the figures on increased costs and growing competition from other destinations.

"Tourists now have more choices," he said, adding "because many countries have relaxed their visa requirements.
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Currency rates in some countries have depreciated remarkably over the past two years and airlines are offering more international routes at competitive prices."

Hong Kong Disneyland's total attendances fell to 6.8 million in the year, a 9.3 percent fall, while the figures also revealed a dramatic 23 percent drop in numbers from China, which now accounts for 41 percent of total visitors compared with a half during its peak.

Kam admitted it had been "a challenging year", but said the company had already adopted a new strategy to attract a more diverse mix of guests, particularly from Asian markets including India, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia.

As for competition from the new Shanghai Disney Resort, which is due to open this summer, Kam said the Hong Kong park will continue to launch new attractions to lure visitors.

In 2016, he said it is opening new features based on the blockbuster movies "Star Wars" and "Iron Man", as well as a resort hotel. The site also plans to launch a three-day discount ticket to compete with Shanghai Disney.