China lifted a ban on group tours to more than 70 locations, giving travel and airline stocks in Asia a boost. China's culture and tourism ministry said Thursday that group tours will resume to over dozens of locations in Asia-Pacific, Europe, Africa and North America. South Korean airline and travel stocks saw the strongest reaction, with tour agency, airline and hotel stocks all surging. Travel agency Lotte Tour Development saw its shares spike more than 25%, while shares of luxury hotel operator Hotel Shilla surged 17%. South Korean airlines also saw gains, with Asiana Airlines climbing 7% and Korea Airlines advancing 3.1%.

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Organizations: North America, Travel, Lotte Tour Development, Asiana Airlines, Korea Airlines Locations: Seoul, China, Asia, Pacific, Europe, Africa, North, Japan, South Korea, Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, Israel