CHINA, INDIA TOURISTS A POTENTIAL GOLDMINE
Relaxation of ‘Visa on Arrival’ requirement can boost arrivals, says Maybank Kim Eng
MALAYSIA’S economy stands to gain as the government steps up its “Malaysia Truly Asia” promotional activities in China and India.
In delivering its report titled “Blue Skies, But Keep Your Seatbelts Fastened” at the Invest Asia 2019 conference, here, recently, Maybank Kim Eng senior economist Chua Hak Bin said if the government accorded multiple-entry visa to China tourists from the current single entry, it would bode well for the Visit Malaysia 2020 marketing campaigns.
“Currently, China’s passport penetration rate of nine per cent of its population is low.
“India’s passport penetration of just five per cent of its people and rising income also makes it the next growth market for tourist arrivals among Asean nations,” he said.
Last month, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi had announced that the “Visa On Arrival” requirement for tourists from China and India might be relaxed in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2020.
Tourism is the third-highest contributor to Malaysia’s foreign exchange receipts after manufacturing and commodities.
MyTourismData portal has forecast Malaysia will receive 28.1 million visitors and collect RM92.2 billion from tourism receipts this year.
“Tourism receipts are an important driver of services exports as well as current account and foreign exchange reserves.
“In Malaysia, tourism contributes to 15 per cent of its economy,” he said, adding that tourists typically spent on food and beverage, hotel accommodation, flight tickets and taxi fares.
Chua noted that for the past decade, tourist arrivals from China had started to overtake that of the Middle East.
“China visitors have been driving the boom. In view of heightened United States-China trade tensions, many Chinese visitors are skipping the US in favour of holidays in Asean countries.
“While the US is keen to build walls, Malaysia stands to benefit from building bridges,” he said.