MADRID (AFP) - The number of international tourist arrivals is expected to drop sharply this year due to the novel coronavirus, the World Tourism Organisation said on Friday (March 6), reversing a previous forecast for a substantial increase.

The Madrid-based United Nations body said in a statement that arrivals were now projected to fall by 1-3 per cent in 2020, instead of the growth of 3-4 per cent it forecast in January.