KUALA LUMPUR, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia recorded more than 21 million international visitor arrivals in the first half of 2026, an increase of 2.5 percent over the same period last year, Malaysian Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing said on Monday.
The figure was achieved despite the disruptions resulting from the conflict in the Middle East, Tiong said during the presentation of the First Half 2026 Performance Report.
Tiong said Europe and the Middle East were among the most affected markets. Nevertheless, sustained growth in arrivals from Singapore, the Philippines, China, Central Asia, Oceania, and North America helped Malaysia maintain an overall growth of 2.5 percent.
He said Malaysia received 88,058 international flights during the first six months of the year, compared with 91,486 flights originally scheduled.
Tiong added that Malaysia's international flight network continued to expand, with 23 new routes, 12 new flight services to Malaysia and nine charter services introduced between January and July. ■
