Budget Day - October 21

Today is Budget Day - where Malaysia's Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak presents the Government's Budget 2017.


What can Malaysians expect from the new budget..

Let's see what The Star has to say:

Below are some items that could feature in the coming year's budget, according to analysts' research notes and local media reports.

CASH AID
RHB Bank foresees a RM100 ringgit hike in cash handouts for low-income households, bumping up the allocation to about RM6.6 billion next year in a bid to stimulate consumer spending. For 2016, it was increased by RM50 to RM1,000 per household.

GST
The Government will likely maintain the goods and services tax introduced in April 2015, at 6% to avoid any disruption to household expenses and cost of doing business, says asset management firm Affin Hwang.

CORPORATE TAX
Affin Hwang thinks a one percentage point cut to corporate tax, effective 2018, will be announced. The rate was cut by one percentage point this year to 24%.

PERSONAL INCOME TAX
There will likely be no cut to personal income tax rates, though there may be more provisions for tax relief next year, according to Maybank Investment Bank. More..

We'll know for sure this evening or out in black-and-white tomorrow. Que sera sera. This 'Starbucks' uncle says it well..

This image has gone viral. It shows an elderly man in Hong Kong, reading his newspaper nonchalantly in a flooded Hong Kong Starbucks cafe. The Chinese has a saying that even if the sky falls, you can use it as a blanket. No big deal at all.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Budget 2013

Budget 2013 was tabled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday. Tax breaks, affordable housing and cash for the needy are just a number of the goodies.

Read Full text of the Budget speech..

Budget 2012 - PM's budget speech

If you are interested, here is the Full text of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's Budget 2012 speech in Parliament Friday, yesterday, Oct 7:

Mr Speaker Sir,

I beg to move the Bill intituled “An Act to apply a sum from the Consolidated Fund for the service of the year 2012 and to appropriate that sum for the service of that year” be read a second time.

I begin the 2012 Budget speech by reciting the holy kalimah Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

1. Alhamdulillah, Praise be to the Almighty for His blessings on the people and our beloved country. As citizens with different faiths we have more reasons to be grateful to the Almighty.

2. Malaysia is a successful nation. In a short period, we have changed the face of the nation from being an agricultural and low income nation to a modern industrial upper middle income country. This success did not come easy. It was a result of hard work between the Government and the people who toiled together and held firmly to the principle of systematic planning and effective implementation. This is the blessing to a country with a responsible Government since independence. This is not a Government that makes empty promises but a responsible Government which always place the interest of the people above all and carries out policies for the benefit of the people and well-being of the nation.

3. This is not a norm but an extraordinary success. Looking back, there are many countries in the world which had more potential to succeed than Malaysia at the early days of their independence. However, they faltered midway even though they have vast natural resources and were not subjected to ethnic and socioeconomic differences as well as physical separation.

Full text..

Budget 2012

According to the full text of the Prime Minister's Budget 2012 speech yesterday, the PM proposed 117 items. I only managed to go through some earlier items and one that caught my attention is the item on My First Home Scheme. For those of you who qualify, you would be happy to note that the limit has been increased from RM220,000 to RM400,000. This basically means that a first-time house-buyer would be able to buy a higher-priced house (max of RM400,000) at the same time enjoying a full 100% loan.

Considering the sharp hike in prices of houses here in recent years, this increase is indeed helpful in the direction of home ownership. I wonder if manufactured homes would be a welcome alternative. At least, there would be substantial savings for the house-buyer.

Back to Budget 2012, what are your thoughts? Do you think it is a good Budget to the people at large?