Zafrul: National debt at RM1.045 trillion as of June

 

PARLIAMENT | The government’s debt now stands at RM1.045 trillion or 63.8 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) as of June this year. 

Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz (above) in a written response to Karupaiya Mutusami (Pakatan Harapan-Padang Serai) said that RM43.1 billion, or 18.4 percent, of Putrajaya’s estimated total revenue, was allocated for the federal government’s debt service charges for 2022. 

“By the end of June 2022, a total of RM19.8 billion was spent paying off interests of the government’s outstanding debt.

“The government is always committed to ensuring that interest payments are made according to the set schedule,” he said in the reply, dated July 20. 

He added that debt servicing payments are classified as Liability Item T13, which is one of the liability expenses that is prioritised over other expenditure items as stipulated under Article 98(1)(b) of the Constitution, which states all debt charges are the responsibility of Putrajaya.

Earlier this week, Zafrul assured that the country’s fiscal position was still strong and that the federal government’s debt was still under control.

He said the government remains highly disciplined and has never failed to pay interest and matured debts despite having gone through a series of economic and financial recession crises.

It was reported that as of end-June 2022, offshore loans amounted to RM29.4 billion, while statutory debt accounted for 60.4 percent of GDP.

The External Loans Act 1963 provided for offshore borrowings not to exceed RM35 billion and the Interim Measures for Government Financing (Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19)) (Amendment) Act 2021 stipulated that the statutory limit of government debt could not be more than 65 percent of GDP. - Mkini