KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 -- Malaysia's tourism slowdown is expected to reverse in the second half of 2026, with international visitor arrivals forecast to surpass pre-pandemic levels by year-end despite a mid-year dip blamed largely on disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict, according to BMI, a unit of Fitch Solutions.

In a report released yesterday, BMI forecast Malaysia would receive 27.97 million international tourist arrivals this year, representing a 5.1 per cent increase from 2025 and 7.2 per cent above the 2019 pre-pandemic benchmark.

The upbeat outlook comes even as May arrivals slipped 3.3 per cent year-on-year to 2.6 million visitors, marking the third monthly decline of 2026. Year-to-date arrivals reached 10.6 million, u...