Malaysia Economic Monitor, December 2014 : Towards a Middle-Class Society

Malaysia has in many ways become a success story in shared prosperity. Shared prosperity means that all households experience income growth, but growth is higher for those households at the bottom of the distribution, a pattern that leads to lower inequality. In the past 40 years, Malaysia drew on its natural resources to nearly eradicate absolute poverty, from 49 percent in 1970 to 1 percent in 2014. The number of Malaysians vulnerable to falling into absolute poverty has also declined in this period. To accelerate Malaysia s transformation into a middle-class society, Malaysia may consider prioritizing reforms that: (i) close the educational achievement gaps at the post-secondary levels by compensating for family background, including pursuing universal pre-primary enrolment and otherpolicies to boost the quality of the poorest performing schools; (ii) provide more demand-driven post-secondary skills training for those already in the labor markets; (iii) create an integrated social safety net including both social insurance mechanisms to protect households against shocks and old age (for example by introducing unemployment insurance and redirecting subsidy savings to matching contributions to retirement accounts), and higher levels of social transfers (by consolidating, improving targeting, and increasing benefits of existing programs); and (iv) this safety net may be financed through more progressive tax policy (for example by reviewing the top marginal personal income tax rate and expanding the number of taxpayers).

Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	World Bank Group
Language:	English en_US
Published:	Washington, DC 2014-12
Subjects:	ADVANCED ECONOMIES, AGRICULTURAL COMMODITY, ASSET CLASSES, ASSET PRICE, ASSET QUALITY, BALANCE OF PAYMENTS, BANKING SECTOR, BANKING SYSTEM, BASIS POINTS, BLUE CHIPS, CAPITAL FLOW, CAPITAL FLOWS, CAPITAL FORMATION, CAPITAL INFLOWS, CAPITAL MARKETS, CAPITAL OUTFLOWS, CAPITAL RATIO, CAPITAL SECURITIES, CASH FLOW, CASH TRANSFERS, CENTRAL BANK, COMMERCIAL BANKS, COMMODITIES, COMMODITY, COMMODITY EXPORT, COMMODITY EXPORTS, COMMODITY PRICES, CONSUMER PRICE INFLATION, CONSUMERS, CREDIBILITY, CREDIT CARDS, CREDIT GROWTH, CURRENT ACCOUNT BALANCE, CURRENT ACCOUNT SURPLUS, DEBT, DEBT LEVELS, DEBT SECURITIES, DEBT SECURITIES MARKET, DEFICITS, DEPOSIT, DEPOSITOR, DEPOSITS, DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS, DEVELOPMENT POLICIES, DIRECT INVESTMENT, DISBURSEMENTS, DIVIDEND, DIVIDEND PAYMENTS, DIVIDEND POLICY, DIVIDENDS, DOLLAR VALUE, DOMESTIC CURRENCY, DOMESTIC ECONOMY, ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS, ECONOMIC COOPERATION, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS, ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE, ECONOMIC RESEARCH, ECONOMICS RESEARCH, EMERGING MARKET, EMERGING MARKET ECONOMIES, ENTRY POINT, EQUIPMENT, EQUITIES, EQUITY FINANCING, EQUITY FLOWS, EQUITY INVESTMENTS, EXCESS LIQUIDITY, EXCHANGE RATE, EXPENDITURE, EXPENDITURES, EXPORT GROWTH, EXPORTERS, FINANCES, FINANCIAL ASSETS, FINANCIAL RISKS, FINANCIAL VOLATILITY, FISCAL CONSOLIDATION, FISCAL POLICY, FIXED CAPITAL, FIXED INVESTMENT, FOOD PRICES, FORECASTS, FOREIGN CURRENCIES, FOREIGN CURRENCY, FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENTS, FOREIGN EQUITY, FOREIGN EXCHANGE, FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVE, FOREIGN HOLDINGS, FOREIGN INVESTMENT, FOREIGN PORTFOLIO, FUND INFORMATION, FUTURES, GDP, GINI COEFFICIENT, GLOBAL ECONOMIC PROSPECTS, GLOBAL INVESTORS, GLOBAL PORTFOLIO, GLOBAL PORTFOLIOS, GLOBAL RISK, GLOBAL TRADE, GOVERNMENT BOND, GOVERNMENT BOND YIELDS, GOVERNMENT DEBT, GOVERNMENT DEBT SECURITIES, GOVERNMENT SECURITIES, GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT, GROSS FIXED CAPITAL FORMATION, GROWTH RATE, GROWTH RATES, HOLDING, HOME COUNTRY, HOME OWNERSHIP, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLD WEALTH, HOUSING LOAN, INCOME, INCOME GROUPS, INCOME GROWTH, INCOME INEQUALITY, INCOME MEASURES, INCOME SHOCKS, INCOME TAX, INCOME TAXES, INCOMES, INEQUALITY MEASURES, INFLATION RATE, INFLATIONARY PRESSURE, INFLATIONARY PRESSURES, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, INSTITUTIONAL INVESTORS, INSURANCE, INTEREST INCOME, INTEREST RATE, INTEREST RATES, INTEREST RATES ON MORTGAGE, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, INTERNATIONAL FINANCE, INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION, INTERNATIONAL RESERVES, INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS, INTERNATIONAL TRADE, INVENTORIES, INVESTMENT INCOME, INVESTMENT PROJECTS, ISLAMIC INSTRUMENTS, ISSUANCE, ISSUANCES, LABOR MARKET, LABOR MARKETS, LARGE-SCALE INVESTMENT, LIQUIDITY, LOCAL BUSINESSES, MARKET PRICES, MATURITY, MICROENTERPRISES, MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES, MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRY, MONETARY FUND, MONETARY POLICY, MORTGAGE, MORTGAGE DEBT, MORTGAGE LOANS, NATIONAL INCOME, NATURAL RESOURCES, NET CAPITAL, NON-PERFORMING LOANS, OIL PRICES, OUTPUT, OUTPUT GAP, PENSION, PENSIONS, PERSONAL INCOME, PORTFOLIO, PORTFOLIO FLOWS, PORTFOLIO INVESTMENT, POWER PARITY, PRIVATE DEBT, PRIVATE INVESTMENT, PRODUCTIVE INVESTMENTS, PROVIDENT FUND, PUBLIC INVESTMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR DEFICIT, PURCHASING POWER, QUALITY OF ASSETS, REAL ESTATE, REAL GDP, REAL INTEREST, REAL INTEREST RATES, REMITTANCES, RESERVE, RETURN, RISK AVERSION, SAVINGS, SECURITIES MARKET, SHARE OF INVESTMENT, SHORT-TERM EXTERNAL DEBT, SKILLS SHORTAGES, SOCIAL PROTECTION, SOCIAL SAFETY NET, STOCK MARKET, STOCK MARKET CAPITALIZATION, STOCK PRICE, STOCK PRICES, STOCKS, SWAPS, SYSTEMIC RISK, TAX, TAX COLLECTIONS, TAX POLICY, TAX RATE, TAX SYSTEM, TAXATION, TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY, TRADE BALANCE, TRADING, TREASURIES, UNEMPLOYMENT, UNEMPLOYMENT RATE, VOLATILITY, WAGE GROWTH, WAGES, WORKING CAPITAL, WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS, WORLD TRADE,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/12/23035132/malaysia-economic-monitor-towards-middle-class-society https://hdl.handle.net/10986/21057
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