Growth may await Penang in the short term, but adapting to Industry 4.0 has to happen now.
According to the World Bank, Malaysia’s economic growth will continue at a moderate pace over the next two years. This goes together with the bank’s expectation of lower capital expenditure growth in Malaysia.
The country’s 2018’s budget deficit is expected to hit 2.8% of GDP (vs. 3% in 2017), and higher expenditure will be offset by an increase in revenue, which is mainly driven by stronger economic growth and the recovery of oil prices. While economic growth for 2018 is projected to reach an impressive 5-5.5%, this forecast is propelled by the positive projection of the global economy rather than by sound fiscal and economic policies at the federal level of government.
