Zheng Chris Cao

Zheng Chris Cao is a Lecturer in Economics at Aston Business School, Aston University, since 2018. His research focuses on tourism economics, globalisation, and applied econometrics, particularly examining tourism market interdependencies and policy impacts. He has published widely in top-tier journals and contributed invited book chapters, with expertise in macroeconometric and spatial methods.

Prior roles include Research Fellow at the University of Surrey (2015–2018) and Research Assistant at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2009–2011). He holds a PhD from the University of Surrey, an MSc from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and a BEcon from Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

His research interests span tourism demand modelling, economic development, and social network analysis. He serves on editorial boards for the Annals of Tourism Research and Journal of Sustainable Tourism, and is a member of key academic bodies like the International Association of Tourism Economics and American Economic Association.

Teaching includes courses on macroeconomics and the global economic environment. Awards include Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) and Chartered Membership (CMBE) from the Chartered Association of Business Schools.