Domestic demand expected to spur economy
THE economy is expected to expand by between four and five per cent next year, translating into gross national income (GNI) per capita growth of five per cent to RM39,699.
Growth will emanate from domestic demand, particularly private consumption and private investment expenditures, which are expected to expand 6.3 per cent and 5.8 per cent, respectively.
The savings-investment gap is expected to narrow to 0.5 per cent to 1.5 per cent of GNI, according to the Economic Report 2016/2017.
Inflation will remain manageable, while the economy continues to operate under full employment.
All sectors of the economy are expected to contribute to growth, with the services and manufacturing sectors spearheading the expansion.
The fiscal deficit is expected to improve further to three per cent of gross domestic product, with the government’s commitment to enhance revenue and rein in expenditure.
The wellbeing of the people is the main priority and there will be measures to stimulate economic activities while efforts will be intensified to strengthen human capital.
At the same time, efforts to improve public service delivery will remain a priority.
The 1Malaysia People’s Aid will be continued, with allocations also for upskilling, reskilling and entrepreneurship training.
Subsidy programmes will be continued while business models of housing programmes will be enhanced to eliminate inefficiencies in the housing sub-sector.
In accelerating economic growth, measures will be introduced to invigorate the capital market as well as empower exporters to scale up their operations by looking beyond traditional markets.
On the supply side, the focus will be on areas with high multiplier effects such as tourism, digital economy, small and medium enterprises, entrepreneurship and research and development.
On empowering human capital, there will be efforts to strengthen the teaching profession and school performance, improve education facilities and transform technical and vocational education and training to meet industry demand.