High-impact investing will bring spillovers to the economy: Maybank CEO

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia continues to attract high-impact investments that will have medium and long-term spillover effects on the economy, said Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli, President and CEO of Maybank Group.

He said with Malaysia Madani the country is a blueprint for sustainable growth, saying Madani’s six core values ​​- sustainability, prosperity, innovation, respect, trust and compassion – emphasize a “humanistic economy” by balancing the social component with economic development merge.

“Budget 2023 is the first step in setting the development framework of Malaysia Madani under the unity government. As evidenced by the measures presented in the 2023 budget, a holistic approach is mandated and we welcome the support given to businesses to bring greater equity while ensuring adequate social safety nets to safeguard the future of those in need, particularly vulnerable groups. to secure.

“More specifically, we aim to drive sustainable investment and allocate sufficient resources to high-growth areas to sustain long-term economic growth,” he said in his opening remarks at the Invest Malaysia 2023 event here today.

In this regard, he said that transitional investments and financing are similarly important for Malaysian companies.

“We believe Invest Malaysia offers a great opportunity for investors to better understand Malaysia’s medium-term fiscal and economic strategy to develop sustainably, enhance competitiveness and strengthen its growth trajectory.

Khairussaleh said that shifting to digitization and enabling a digital economy is another key driver for the nation as it goes beyond operational efficiencies for businesses and individual users and is critical not only to innovation but also to inclusion.

In his welcome speech at Invest Malaysia 2023, Bursa Malaysia Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar said global growth is recovering from the peak of the pandemic amid persistent global inflation, ongoing geopolitical conflicts and monetary tightening habe slowed to 2.9% last year and is expected to grow just 1.7% this year.

“Both the global and Malaysian economies are still growing, albeit at a slower pace. These conditions have brought to light various vulnerabilities evidenced by manufacturing supply chain disruptions, weather-related food shortages and supply shortages, among others,” he said.

Notwithstanding these challenges, said Abdul Wahid, the situation has also created space for new strengths, such as: B. An increased sense of urgency to develop and adopt technology- and data-driven solutions.