KUALA LUMPUR (May 24): The Ministry of Finance (MOF) is serious about ensuring the success of economic reforms in Malaysia, aiming to overcome the middle-income trap and stimulate the economy.

The MOF said the Madani government’s pro-development policies and encouraging innovation had given new life to the national economy. 

“The encouraging response from investors in the early stages of this policy reform proves that the Malaysian economy is on the right track to reap more wealth in the coming years,” the MOF said in a post on the X online platform. 

It also said the Madani Economy framework aims for the national economy to grow at an average rate of 5.5% annually in the medium term, driven by investments that stimulate the local business ecosystem.

The framework also outlines efforts to reduce the wealth gap to ensure equality and stability in society.

In the post, the MOF also shared statistics of Malaysia’s market performance in the early stages of economic reform, which was one of the best in Asean as of May 20, 2024.

This included the performance of the stock index, which increased by 11.9%, the second best among the stock indices of Asean countries, indicating a sharp increase in the performance of the FBM KLCI, compared with -2.7% in 2023. 

The MOF also stated that the compound annual growth rate of foreign direct investment was the best in four years at 22.4%, surpassing Singapore’s 17.7%.

In addition, Malaysia’s (company index) dividend yields of between 4% and 5% were the best in the region, apart from Singapore.