PHNOM PENH, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's international tourist arrivals plummeted almost 46 percent to 1.3 million in the first four months of 2026, down from 2.4 million over the same period last year, said a Ministry of Tourism report released on Friday.
During the January-April period this year, China, Vietnam and the United States constituted the top three inbound tourism markets for the Southeast Asian country, the report said.
According to the report, Cambodia welcomed 331,199 Chinese, 312,021 Vietnamese, and 80,300 American visitors in the first four months of the year, representing declines of 14.5 percent, 24 percent and 11.5 percent, respectively.
Thong Mengdavid, deputy director at the China-ASEAN Studies Center of the Cambodia University of Technology and Science, said the slump reflected regional economic slowdowns, online scam issues, and the impact of the border dispute with Thailand.
"The conflict in the Middle East, which triggered a spike in fuel prices and flight disruptions, also contributed to this sharp decline," he told Xinhua.
Tourism constitutes one of the four pillars of Cambodia's economy, alongside agriculture, construction and real estate, and the export of garments, footwear and travel goods. ■
