China and Malaysia have agreed to extend the duration of the mutual visa-free exemption policy, a move that will not only facilitate the bilateral exchanges but also showcase China's continuous efforts in boosting high-quality opening-up.
On Thursday, China agreed to extend the policy until the end of 2025 and to reciprocate, Malaysia would extend its visa exemption for Chinese tourists until the end of 2026, according to the Joint Statement between the People's Republic of China and Malaysia on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership towards China-Malaysia Community with a Shared Future.
Search volumes for Kuala Lumpur on domestic travel platform Qunar surged 49 percent week-on-week following the announcement on Thursday. Malaysia remained one of the top three overseas destinations on the platform, with flight bookings increasing by 2.2 folds year-on-year.
From June 1-19, the number of China-Malaysia round-trip flights has recovered to more than 90 percent of the level of the same period in 2019, with a daily average of more than 100 round-trip passenger flights.
