Passengers wait in line to board a plane to China at the Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. AP-Yonhap

China's abrupt suspension of short-term visa services for Koreans has dashed long-term recovery hopes for the country's travel industry, industry insiders said Tuesday, amid likely cancellations of trips to the neighboring country due to the measure.

The Chinese Embassy in Seoul made public the decision in a post on its WeChat account earlier in the day, citing an "instruction" from Beijing for its embassy and consulates to stop issuing visas, including visits for trade, tourism and medical care purposes.

The decision was made in protest of Korea's new coronavirus entry restrictions imposed on Chinese travelers from last week.

Local travel agencies have expressed concern over Beijing's tit-for-tat travel measure, saying it could lead to postponements of travel services to China.

"While the measures will have a limited effect in the short term, they could have a negative long-term impact on the industry if tensions between China and Korea continue to escalate," said Cho Il-sang, a spokesperson for Hana Tour Service Inc., one of the largest tour agencies in Korea.

According to Cho, airliners have been planning to add more flights to China around late March, expecting tourism demand to China rebound by then. "Today's measures are likely to postpone the industry's plans to revive tourism to China this year," he said.

Passengers arriving from China enters a COVID-19 testing center at the Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. AP-Yonhap

Mode Tour, another local tour agency, canceled its plans to sell travel services to China following Beijing's retaliatory move.

"We've halted plans to sell package tours to China amid the country strengthening restrictions against inbound travelers," a company official said.

The bilateral travel restriction has dealt a blow to local duty free operators, which depend heavily on Chinese tourists for revenue, as well.

"The duty free industry had been suffering for a long time since the pandemic. In order for flights between the two countries to resume, China and Korean governments need to agree on reopening their borders," said a duty free industry insider who asked for anonymity.

An official from Lotte Duty Free, a unit of Lotte Hotel Co., said it was "regretful that China was strengthening measures against Koreans at a time when the country was starting to reopen."

"We are keeping a close watch of the situation," the company official added.

Companies from other industries sensitive to diplomatic issues between Korea and China were also on the lookout against potential fallout due to the situation.

"We are keenly observing the situation to see whether the measure from China stalls the reopening mood between the two countries," said an official from Amorepacific Corp., a Korean cosmetic giant. (Yonhap)