Friday, April 23, 2010

20100423 0923 Malaysian Economic News.

Bank Negara Malaysia's international reserves amounted to RM313.1bn (US$95.7bn) as at 15 Apr. The reserves position is sufficient to finance 8.8 months of retained imports and is four times the short-term external debt. That compared to RM311.7bn (US$95.3bn) as at 31 Mar. (BNM, Bernama)

The revised domestic mail tariff effective July will not burden the people, Information Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said. On the other hand, the tariff revision would benefit over 15,000 staff of Pos Malaysia. The tariff revision would save RM76m in subsidy and increase the salary and allowance of Pos Malaysia staff from RM100-RM300. (Bernama)

Starting 1 Jul, about 150,000 local safety officers in the security industry will enjoy a salary hike ranging from 67%-75%. Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam said they would take home between RM1,100-1,450 per month more following the pay rise. The present salary for the workers in the industry ranges from RM300-400 a month. "We will increase the salaries based on the various geographical zones and the details will be released later. A similar process would be done for the textile, electronic and hospitality industries,” he added.
·    Subramaniam also said that the ministry was reviewing the labour laws to promote economic growth in accordance with the New Economy Model announced by the prime minister. (Bernama)

The Government's public debt was RM362.4bn (53.7% of GDP) as at 31 Dec 09. PM Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said a major portion of the debt was domestic debts amounting to RM348.6bn (96.2% of total debt) while the remaining RM13.9bn (3.8%) was external debts. "The small amount of external debt is in line with the government's current policy which prioritizes domestic borrowings to finance the country's development projects as the cost is cheaper and there is less exposure to foreign exchange risk," Najib added. (Bernama)

Malaysians need at least RM1m in retirement savings to live comfortably, says Sasitharan Krishnan, Senior Director Customer Relations ReMark Malaysia. He said based on research undertaken, most retirees were unable to reach the needed savings and this caused them to look for jobs, even though retired. It was because they did not plan their finances early and lack of a savings discipline. The study also showed that savings in the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) only lasted for 3 years. (Bernama)

Malaysian investors need not worry about investing in Thailand despite the ongoing political troubles the country is facing at the moment, Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said. He pointed to the country's stock and currency exchange were continuing to perform well.
  • Under the Stronger Thailand 2012 project, a total of THB1.4tr had been endorsed for infrastructure development that would not only raise the image of the nation as a progressive state but also invite foreign investment. (Bernama)

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