Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the government will work to gradually reduce the national debt and budget deficit, without resorting to raising taxes that hurt the poor.
A currency exchange counter in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo: AFP/VNA)
Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – MalaysianPrime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the government will work togradually reduce the national debt and budget deficit, without resorting to raisingtaxes that hurt the poor.
He told the media recentlythat Malaysia’s debt has reached the ceiling and should gradually go down.
The countryhad raised the debt limit to 60% of gross domestic product (GDP) from 55% in2020 in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and lifted it further to 65%in 2021 to make room for additional borrowings to fund fiscal stimulus.
Thelaw under which the ceiling was raised lapsed on December 31, 2022. Malaysia’sactual debt is at 61% of GDP.
While Malaysia remainsA-rated by credit agencies Moody’s Investors Service and S&P GlobalRatings, a reduction in government debt ratio will be key to winning a highercredit score from Fitch Ratings Ltd., which is currently the only one of thethree main rating companies to have a lower BBB+ rating on the country.
Addressing adialogue session on budget on January 17, the PM said Malaysia’s national debtincluding liabilities has reached 1.5 trillion RM (about 346 billion USD),equivalent to 80% of GDP./.
The Communications and Digital Ministry of Malaysia plans to announce the introduction and implementation of 5G by Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) with added features at the end of March.
Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will make an official visit to Singapore on January 30 at the invitation of Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong.
Malaysia’s Kenanga Research (Kenanga) expects tourist arrivals in the country to jump almost four-fold to 9.6 million in 2023 from an estimated 2.5 million a year ago.
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim on January 30 witnessed the signing of three bilateral cooperation agreements on the digital economy, green economy, personal data protection, and cyber security.
The European Union (EU) is expecting trade with Malaysia to recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of this year, EU Ambassador to Malaysia Michalis Rokas has said.
In his article, Oscar Sanchez Serra highlighted President Ho Chi Minh’s founding of the Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper on June 21, 1925, which marked the birth of Vietnam's revolutionary press rooted in a bold and far-sighted vision.
Several ASEAN meetings are scheduled to take place in Port Dickson this September, including the Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) for ASEAN Plus Three (APT), the East Asia Summit (EAS), the 15th ASEAN Maritime Forum, and the 13th Expanded ASEAN Maritime Forum.
Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has ordered the urgent implementation of a national policy to crack down on all forms of call centre scams, online fraud, and illegal gambling, which are now considered threats to national security.
Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto and EAEU Trade Minister Andrey Slepnev jointly declared the conclusion of FTA talks on the sidelines of the 28th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2025), according to the statement.
The article stressed that throughout his revolutionary career, the founder of modern Vietnam consistently regarded the revolutionary press as a vital part of the Vietnamese Party’s and nation’s revolutionary struggle.
Pichai said the trade talks with the US are important and need to move forward professionally, without regard for any political changes in Thailand, believing that Thailand has clear principles, guidelines and procedures in place.
The tax adjustment supports the Malaysian Government’s strategy to reduce reliance on foreign food supply chains and to assist domestic farmers, a finance official has said.
The proposed venue is located in the Chatuchak area of Bangkok, featuring eight public sites, including Krungthep Aphiwat Central Terminal and several nearby parks.
Connectivity is expected to improve further with the completion of the fifth Laos–Thailand Friendship Bridge by the end of 2025, facilitating logistics and agricultural exports to Vietnam, Thailand, and China.
Two naval gunboats intercepted a fishing vessel carrying 1.5 tonnes of methamphetamine hydrochloride off the coast of the main island of Luzon just before dawn, in a joint operation with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
In the today context of socio-economic development and growth, the professionalism of Vietnam’s revolutionary journalists continues to rise, guided by exemplary mastery of new information technologies and the modernisation of their founding principles to preserve the enduring values of revolutionary journalism.
Thai Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Vuttikrai Leewiraphan Thailand's formal proposal will be substantial enough for the US to consider further detailed negotiations. He hoped for a tariff rate not exceeding 10% and suggested that the US might extend the negotiation period if an agreement is not reached by the July 8 deadline.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture and the Association of Thai Silk & Culture Promotions, the event honors Her Majesty the Queen on her 47th birthday anniversary and promotes Thai craftsmanship on an international stage.
Prensa Latina's recent article on Vietnam’s assurance of smooth and effective transition to a leaner structure highlighted Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s latest directions on implementing 28 resolutions regarding the decentralisation and delegation of authority.
The lab focuses on four key thematic areas: energy transition and green innovation, sustainable agriculture, circular economy and sustainable cities, and nature-based solutions and biodiversity.
The key content of the document titled "Accelerating Innovative Strategies: Addressing the OOSCY Challenges" will be refined further in a seminar preceding the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur this October.
This follows Telegram’s serious failure to address the content that has been repeatedly reported to them, despite various efforts of negotiation and cooperation made by MCMC, it said.
A currency exchange counter in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo: AFP/VNA) 
