COVID-19 lockdown puts pressure on Malaysian government's finances
Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Mohamed Azmin Ali said the government's finances are becoming “very constrained” as a surge in COVID-19 infections has once again forced the country into a lockdown.
People wearing face masks walk in front of the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo: Xinhua)He told CNBC that the Malaysian government has announced a new stimulus package worth 40 billion Malaysian ringgit (roughly 9.68 billion USD) to help businesses and households cope with another round of “total lockdown” that started on June 1.
That latest stimulus came on top of six prior packages worth a total 340 billion Malaysian ringgit (around 82.31 billion USD) rolled out over the past year. The government said the additional spending could push 2021′s fiscal deficit above its target of 6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
During the June 1-14 “total lockdown,” businesses offering essential services will remain open while certain segments of the manufacturing sector can operate with reduced capacity.
Malaysia’s COVID-19 outbreak has substantially worsened despite the government imposing lockdowns of varying degrees over the past year.
Last week, the Southeast Asian country reported five consecutive days of record infections and on June 2 registered its largest daily death toll since the start of 2020. Overall, Malaysia has confirmed more than 595,000 COVD-19 cases and 3,096 deaths, data from the health ministry showed on June 3./.
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