PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia’s tourism industry generated RM323bil and contributed 15.9% to the gross domestic product (GDP) last year, according to the Tourism Satellite Account 2025 released by the Statistics Department of Malaysia.
It said the industry grew 8.6% last year, up from 7.8% growth in 2024, driven by strong demand for internal tourism, comprising inbound and domestic tourism expenditure.
"Internal tourism expenditure rose to RM236.9bil in 2025 from RM205.6bil the previous year, with inbound tourism accounting for 52.7% and domestic tourism 47.3%," it said in a statement on Tuesday (Sept 15).
Of the RM323bil generated, retail trade accounted for the largest share at 50.6%, followed by food and beverage (F&B) services at 16.4% and specialised tourism-related services, including health and meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE), at 13.1%.
Accommodation contributed 9.3%, while cultural, sports and recreational activities accounted for 4.3%.
The department said tourism-related industries employed 3.7 million people last year, or 22.1% of total employment in Malaysia.
Employment in these industries grew 3.5% last year, compared with 4.6% in 2024, with retail trade accounting for 37.9%, followed by F&B services at 36.7% and specialised tourism-related services at 10.5%.
Together, the three subsectors accounted for 85.1% of total employment in tourism-related industries, the department said. – Bernama
