Malaysia has extended shopping hours in the capital to as late as 2:00 am to cater to wealthy Arab visitors during their July to September holiday season, officials said today.

"Arab tourists like to shop after the Maghrib (sunset) prayers but most of the shopping outlets close for the day between 9 pm and 10 pm," Deputy Tourism Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told the official Bernama news agency.

Normal shopping hours in Kuala Lumpur are 10:00 am-10:00 pm but Noraza Yusof from the government-run Kuala Lumpur Tourism Action Council said many shops and malls would now keep their doors open until midnight or 2:00 am.

The extended hours take effect immediately and will run until Sept 10, but Noraza said the tourism ministry was "seriously looking" at making them permanent during peak seasons.

The period between mid-July and mid-September is the peak season for Arab visitors because it coincides with the Middle Eastern school holidays and the region's hot summer months.

Kuala Lumpur's top hotels are currently reporting 90 to 100 percent occupancy thanks to the influx of Arab tourists, who industry experts say spend almost twice as much as other tourists.

Arab Square

The number of Arab tourists visiting Malaysia doubled last year. The government, drawing on its status as a Muslim majority country, is targeting some 200,000 Arab arrivals this year, or a 40 percent increase.

In order to make Arab tourists more comfortable, Malaysia has announced other measures such as creating an "Arab Square" in Kuala Lumpur and hiring Arabic translators.

Tourism is Malaysia's second-largest foreign exchange earner, grossing about RM30 billion in 2004 from 15 million visitors.