To achieve high-income status, Malaysia's gross national income (GNI) per capita must exceed RM60,000.
Cover image via Bernama & Asian Insiders
A lead economist for Malaysia from the World Bank Group has predicted that the country could attain high-income status by 2028
Apurva Sanghi revealed this while speaking at a press conference yesterday, 8 October, to present the latest national economic update from the World Bank, reported Bernama.
He said the World Bank revised Malaysia's economic growth forecast to 4.9% in 2024, an upgrade from its earlier estimate of 4.3% set in April.
He said domestic and external factors have improved Malaysia's economic outlook, as the global economy has performed better than expected over the past six months.
Apurva added that Malaysia's per capita output growth, a key measure of welfare, outperformed its ASEAN peers, standing 12% higher than pre-pandemic levels.
"This means that high-income status for Malaysia is within reach — based on our assumption of the US dollar against the ringgit at the 4.54 level and with an average growth rate of 4.3% — we expect Malaysia to reach the high-income nation status by 2028.
"If the US dollar and ringgit exchange rate stays at the current level of about 4.20, then the high-income goal [could be reached] a year earlier in 2027," said the lead economist.
According to the World Bank's classification, a high-income nation is defined as a country with a GNI per capita exceeding USD14,005 (about RM60,000)
In August, Apurva said five Malaysian states have already surpassed the 2023 high-income threshold, reported Bernama.
Below is the breakdown of the five states with the highest GNI per capita:
– Kuala Lumpur: USD29,967 (RM128,400)
– Labuan: USD19,117 (RM81,900)
– Penang: USD16,660 (RM71,400)
– Sarawak: USD16,650 (RM71,300)
– Selangor: USD14,291 (RM61,200)
In contrast, the following three states have the lowest GNI per capita:
– Kelantan: USD3,850 (RM16,500)
– Perlis: USD5,490 (RM23,500)
– Kedah: USD6,027 (RM25,800)
Malaysia is currently classified as an upper-income nation, a status it has held since 1980.
According to the World Bank's classification, an upper-income nation has a GNI per capita between USD4,516 and USD14,005 (RM19,300 and RM60,000).
The ringgit has strengthened against the US dollar significantly in recent months:
Meanwhile, the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in these five states has surpassed the national average:
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