Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim began his tenure with a pledge to enact structural reforms and boost investor confidence in Malaysia. But after eight months on the job, the veteran politician is finding it hard to pull the Southeast Asian nation out of a years-long economic funk.
The local stock market saw foreign outflows of 4.19 billion ringgit (US$920 million) in the first half of 2023, with a benchmark gauge that is among the worst global performers so far this year. The Malaysian ringgit has likewise tumbled, making it among the worst performers in Asia’s currency markets.
On the other hand, Malaysia’s economy grew above market expectations at 5.6% in the first quarter of the year, during which approved foreign direct investment (FDI) reportedly rose 60% year-on-year to 71.4 billion ringgit. Inflation moderated to a one-year low with the consumer price index coming in at 2.8% in May compared to last year, its slowest monthly pace in 2023.
Yet cost-of-living pressures and political dissatisfaction persists, with economic headwinds and external cyclical factors weighing on the government ahead of state elections in August that are seen as an early referendum on Anwar’s “unity” government, a multi-party alliance that sits uneasily with the long-rivaled political camps’ grassroots support bases.
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.
