Tourism earnings up in Malaysia

Tourism earnings up in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR: The number of tourists visiting Malaysia grew by four percent last year, with visitors pumping more than US$11 billion into the economy, government figures showed Wednesday.

The increase to some 13.3 million tourists came despite a downturn after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in the United States and last October's Bali bombing in neighbouring Indonesia, Tourism Minister Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir said.

He warned, however, that a war against Iraq could see a drop this year in arrivals from the Middle East, which has been a growing market for Malaysia after fallout from the Sept. 11 attacks led Muslims to look for alternatives to holidays in Western countries.

The 2002 income from tourism is estimated to represent some 19.5 percent of GDP, up from 11.7 percent in 2001, the New Straits Times reported. --AFP