Big spender Anwar buying political staying power

Malaysian leader’s record-breaking budget seeks to tax the rich, subsidize the poor and boost his popularity

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has unveiled the largest budget in his nation’s history replete with measures aimed at lowering the cost of living through subsidies and direct cash payments, even as his three-month-old administration claims to be trying to narrow the fiscal deficit.

The record 388.1 billion ringgit (US$87.5 billion) spending plan for 2023 was tabled in parliament by Anwar, who is also finance minister, on February 24 with a self-claimed emphasis on good governance and fiscal prudence. But with state polls due in July, the first electoral bellwether for the premier’s “unity government”, analysts and observers also see political dimensions to the budget.

With a projected slowdown in Malaysia’s export-driven economy, the supply bill’s ostensible focus is on shoring up economic resilience in the face of intensifying global headwinds. Economic growth is expected to moderate to 4.5% this year, down sharply from a stronger-than-expected 8.7% in 2022, the highest rate in two decades.

Whether or not Anwar, who came to power with support from former arch-rival the United Malaysia National Organization (UMNO) and others after November polls, can successfully navigate Malaysia’s economy through geopolitically precarious times will be key to his political staying power, say analysts, with the nation having gone through four premiers in as many years.

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.

Singapore to tax and spend through global headwinds

Expansionary budget aims to soothe the sting of inflation and slowing growth but unpopular sales tax hike is still in the cards

Finance Minister Lawrence Wong expects “positive but slower” growth in Singapore this year due to high inflation and a slowing global economy, headwinds the city-state hopes to address through an expansionary budget designed to help households and businesses.

Unveiling a S$104 billion (US$78.4 billion) spending plan in parliament on February 14, Wong said Singaporeans will have to brace themselves for “a period of relatively higher inflation” that would remain elevated in the city-state at least for the first half of this year. Singapore’s headline inflation rate reached a more than decade-high of 6.1% in 2022, up significantly from 2.3% a year earlier.

Wong, who is also deputy premier and heir apparent to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, stressed that while the economy has recovered to pre-pandemic levels, the country’s fiscal position remains tight, compelling the government to step up efforts to trim its budget deficit and raise revenue while pursuing a more targeted approach to aiding lower-income earners.

In what he previously described as his “Valentine’s Day present” to Singaporeans, Wong announced a slew of assistance measures including a S$3 billion ($2.26 billion) boost in subsidies to lower-income households to offset a higher goods-and-services tax (GST). He also announced higher taxes for multinational companies and on high-value properties and cars.

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.

Anwar puts economy in focus amid fraught politics

Malaysian prime minister takes political heat for ‘nepotism’ and eyes economic overhaul as coalition partner UMNO culls dissenters

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim finds himself in a difficult position, facing economic challenges against the backdrop of rising prices at home and increasing risks to the global economy coupled with domestic political challenges that risk widening disenchantment from his own support base.

Anwar’s fledgling coalition government could only look on as its former nemesis-turned-key partner, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), recently expelled and suspended a number of prominent politicians for disciplinary breaches, including former ministers who had long been opposed to party chief and deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s leadership.

The purge wiped out nearly all of Zahid’s detractors and eliminated the threat of them taking any top posts ahead of an upcoming party election set for March 18. It followed a motion passed at the party’s general assembly last month blocking an electoral contest for UMNO’s top two posts, enabling Zahid to tighten his stranglehold over the once-dominant party.

Anwar named Zahid as his deputy, despite his being on trial for corruption and abuse of power, after UMNO lent its support to his multiracial Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, giving it a parliamentary majority after November 19 elections resulted in a hung parliament. Many of Anwar’s supporters saw the move as the price to pay for political expediency and stability.

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.