Cruise ships departing from China are expected to skip stopovers in South Korea until at least June as Chinese economic retaliation over Seoul's decision to deploy the U.S. antimissile system THAAD continues.
 
An industry official said that as of Wednesday, stopovers in South Korea have been suspended until the end of June, but they could resume if the situation changes.
 
As a result, 182 stopovers by cruise ships departing from Chinese ports have been canceled. The cancellation has led to a loss of some 360-thousand Chinese tourists for South Korea.