STORY: Malaysia witnesses more domestic visitors in Q1
DATELINE: June 28, 2023
LENGTH: 00:02:54
LOCATION: Kuala Lumpur
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of tourists at the Porta De Santiago in Malacca
2. various of tourists visiting the Stadthuys in the heart of Malacca City
3. various of the Malacca River and tourists enjoying a cruise ride in Malacca
4. various of Pulau Lang Tengah, Terengganu
5. various of Langkawi, Kedah

STORYLINE:

The number of Malaysia's domestic tourists rose 33.7 percent year-on-year to 48.6 million in the first quarter of 2023, official data showed Monday.

The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement that for quarter-on-quarter comparison, the number of domestic visitors increased by 3.9 percent as compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.

Meanwhile, domestic tourism expenditure for the first quarter stood at 19.2 billion ringgit (4.1 billion U.S. dollars), jumped 47 percent year-on-year, and rose 4.6 percent quarter-on-quarter.

DOSM data also showed that the domestic tourism performance in Malaysia experienced a notable recovery in 2022, with total spending of 64.1 billion ringgit, soaring 248.1 percent from 18.4 billion ringgit in 2021.

The number of domestic visitors in 2022 also surged 160.1 percent to reach 171.6 million compared to the 66 million recorded in 2021. (1 ringgit equals 0.21 U.S. dollars)

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Kuala Lumpur.
(XHTV)