KUALA LUMPUR, March 27 ― Malaysia’s passenger traffic is forecast to contract by between 36.2 and 38.1 per cent in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom).

"This translates to between 67.7 million and 69.7 million passengers in 2020, a considerable decrease from 2019’s all-time high of 109.2 million passengers,” the commission said in the sixth edition of its industry report.

The revised forecast took into account existing flight cancellations by both Malaysian and foreign carriers totalling 14.0 million seats for the period between January and December 2020, in addition to further seat reductions of 15 per cent for domestic routes and 20 per cent for international routes.

The commission highlights, however, that material developments continue to occur in Malaysia and globally during these unprecedented times, thus quickly affecting the outlook for the industry here.

Mavcom said it will continue to monitor such industry developments and make adjustments to its forecasts accordingly. ― Bernama