Malaysia’s economy is firmly in recovery territory with full-year growth for 2021 having expanded within the official forecast range at 3.1% after a rebound in the final quarter of last year. But Southeast Asia’s third-largest economy isn’t out of the woods as inflationary headwinds threaten to stymie growth-spurring private consumption.
Authorities are also now battling a surge in Covid-19 cases fueled by the highly transmissible Omicron variant, which has driven up daily infections fivefold. The country reported a record high of 27,831 cases on February 16, adding to a cumulative total of more than three million since the pandemic started.
With a 78.8% full vaccination rate and approximately 99.6% of new cases suffering only asymptomatic or mild symptoms, health experts say Omicron’s milder impact should make the current wave more manageable than the deadly Delta variant that killed tens of thousands last year, resulting in one of Asia’s highest fatality and infection rates.
Weary of a viral resurgence, authorities are still not ready to end quarantine restrictions for vaccinated travelers or reopen borders, which have been closed since March 2020. But as Malaysia’s neighbors step up their easing of restrictions on inbound international travel, analysts say the government’s guarded stance risks hindering foreign investment.
Read the full story at Asia Times.
Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.
