Travel services (% of commercial service exports) in Malaysia
Malaysia: Travel services (% of commercial service exports) was 39.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Travel services in Malaysia, 1974–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service exports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for travel services in Malaysia is 39.9%, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and down 21.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, travel services in Malaysia peaked at 55.9% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 2021.
Malaysia ranks 94th of 198 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
Travel services (% of commercial service exports) in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 44.8% | — |
| 1975 | 41.4% | -7.5% |
| 1976 | 40.6% | -2.0% |
| 1977 | 38.8% | -4.5% |
| 1978 | 35.4% | -8.7% |
| 1979 | 33.7% | -5.0% |
| 1980 | 30.3% | -9.9% |
| 1981 | 31.6% | +4.1% |
| 1982 | 35.0% | +10.9% |
| 1983 | 32.8% | -6.4% |
| 1984 | 33.3% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 33.9% | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 34.1% | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 32.9% | -3.7% |
| 1988 | 33.7% | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 37.3% | +10.5% |
| 1990 | 44.7% | +19.8% |
| 1991 | 41.6% | -6.8% |
| 1992 | 41.6% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 34.8% | -16.3% |
| 1994 | 36.6% | +5.2% |
| 1995 | 34.7% | -5.2% |
| 1996 | 29.9% | -13.8% |
| 1997 | 24.0% | -19.7% |
| 1998 | 20.9% | -13.1% |
| 1999 | 30.0% | +43.5% |
| 2000 | 36.0% | +20.2% |
| 2001 | 47.5% | +31.9% |
| 2002 | 48.1% | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 43.6% | -9.3% |
| 2004 | 47.7% | +9.3% |
| 2005 | 45.0% | -5.5% |
| 2006 | 49.7% | +10.4% |
| 2007 | 48.5% | -2.5% |
| 2008 | 49.8% | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 55.9% | +12.3% |
| 2010 | 52.5% | -6.2% |
| 2011 | 50.7% | -3.4% |
| 2012 | 50.0% | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 51.2% | +2.4% |
| 2014 | 53.8% | +5.2% |
| 2015 | 50.7% | -5.8% |
| 2016 | 50.9% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 49.7% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 48.8% | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 48.4% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 13.5% | -72.0% |
| 2021 | 0.4% | -97.3% |
| 2022 | 20.0% | +5361.3% |
| 2023 | 34.9% | +74.1% |
| 2024 | 39.8% | +13.9% |
| 2025 | 39.9% | +0.3% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 39.9% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 49.0%, 81% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 39.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 48.6%, 82% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Travel services (% of commercial service exports) in Malaysia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +5361.3% | 0.4% | 20.0% |
| 2021 | -97.3% | 13.5% | 0.4% |
| 2023 | +74.1% | 20.0% | 34.9% |
| 2020 | -72.0% | 48.4% | 13.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 39.1% | 33.7% | 44.8% | 6 |
| 1980s | 33.5% | 30.3% | 37.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 33.9% | 20.9% | 44.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 47.2% | 36.0% | 55.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 50.7% | 48.4% | 53.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.7% | 0.4% | 39.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More private sector data for Malaysia
- Merchandise trade 151.7% (2025)
- Food imports 8.3% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 72.0% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 340.44 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 63.47 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 10.4% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 72.8% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 376.04 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 64.94 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 10,452 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is travel services in Malaysia?
- Travel services in Malaysia was 39.9% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest travel services recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 55.9% in 2009.
- What is the lowest travel services recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 2021.
- How does Malaysia rank for travel services?
- Malaysia ranks 94th out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
- Is travel services rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Travel services (% of commercial service exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Travel services cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by nonresidents during visits to that economy, or acquired from other economies by residents during visits to these other economies. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are commercial services provided by residents to non-residents.