Chew notes that this year’s budget theme was for a shared future, in which several welfare themes were covered. This includes social support for the cost of living and reducing inequality, raising the eligibility of healthcare subsidies, more facilities for the aged, extra payouts for retirees, and more aggressive programs to upskill the workforce.
As compared to last year’s budget, the analyst says that there is the usual cost of living package, but more focus was given to building up the nest egg for seniors and upskilling the workforce.
Meanwhile, absent were higher consumption taxes on the wealthy.
The budget revealed that FY2023’s overall fiscal deficit stood at $3.6 billion, or 0.5% of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), much larger than the estimated deficit of $0.4 billion, or 0.1% of GDP.
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“The primary balance was better than expected, but a jump in special transfer (Majulah Package) by $7.5 billion widened the expected deficit. FY2024 is expected to show a surplus of $0.8 billion, or 0.1% of GDP,” Chew says.
