The likely development of Chinese vacationers will help Asean's travel industry, say financial analysts.

PublicInvest Exploration, in its new report, said it anticipated that China should add to the recuperation of the worldwide the travel industry, including Malaysia."The resurgence of Chinese vacationers will act as a critical positive component for the Southeast Asia district, but with a slow recuperation direction," it added.

It is, nonetheless, guessed that vacationer appearances may not outperform the past pinnacle kept in 2019 until the principal half of the following year, in any event.

“The reopening of China has yielded a remarkable influx of 178,150 Chinese tourists to Malaysia in the first quarter, a stark contrast to the meagre count of fewer than 1,900 visitors during the corresponding period in the previous year.

“The potential for a complete recovery to the pre-pandemic level of 3.1 million recorded in 2019 (is expected) by the first half of 2024,” it added.

While the Chinese government has actively encouraged tourism, it said the authorities needed time to clear the backlog of passport and visa renewals.

PublicInvest noted that Malaysia has placed considerable emphasis on a substantial resurgence in tourist arrivals during the second half of 2023, propelled by measures to address visa approval challenges and enhance flight connectivity.

“Malaysia’s tourist receipts amounted to RM28.2bil in 2022, compared to RM86.1bil in 2019.

“Its government has set an ambitious target of attracting 16.1 million tourists this year, signifying a notable 60% surge compared with the previous year, with the objective of generating RM49.2bil in tourist receipts,” said the research house.

Hong Leong Investment Bank Research also sees China as a key element in Malaysia’s tourist concoction in its recent report.

“The Chinese are not only important in terms of tourist numbers to Malaysia; they are also ‘high-value tourists’,” it said.

It is noted that prior to the pandemic, China was the third-largest source of tourists to Malaysia, after Singapore and Indonesia.

However, in terms of contribution to tourist receipts, China ranks higher at second, owing to their stronger spending power.

From 2017 to 2019, the typical Chinese tourist spent RM661 to RM768 per day in Malaysia, which was 19% to 72% higher than average.

In its recent report, CGS CIMB also expected an upside from a pick-up in Malaysia’s tourism sector over the next six to 18 months, underpinned by the potential growth of Chinese tourists.

It said that China’s reopening gains could provide further impetus to Malaysia’s economy and current account surplus, especially in 2024.

Malaysia’s tourism sector recently called for improvements in related government departments to attract more international tourists.

The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents said a review of the current procedures on the handling of travellers with Not To Land (NTL) status is crucial to preventing abuses as Malaysia gears up to receive more international visitors.

Its president Tan Kok Liang said it was imperative that the government do all it could to uplift the country’s image as a safe and attractive tourism destination by eliminating corruption at all levels at KL International Airport.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who visited the airport on Sunday, said the government would study measures to improve the services of the relevant departments.

“There are some Customs weaknesses that need to be remedied. Generally, the majority of the services provided by Immigration employees are proceeding smoothly. There are some problems. We will improve and take the appropriate actions if there are flaws,” he added.