KUALA LUMPUR, March 20 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed that Malaysia’s household debt hit RM1.53 trillion by the end of 2023. Anwar, who also serves as the finance minister, outlined the breakdown of household debt, with housing loans comprising 60.5 per cent, followed by vehicle loans at 13.2 per cent, and personal financing at 12.6 per cent, among others. He provided data on household debt for previous years, showing a steady increase from RM1.19 trillion in 2018 to RM1.53 trillion in 2023.
Anwar also noted a slight rise in the ratio of household debt to gross domestic product (GDP), reaching 84.2 per cent in 2023 compared to 82 per cent in 2018. He attributed the average annual growth of household debt, which stands at 5.1 per cent from 2018 to 2023, to incentives in home ownership and vehicle purchases offered by both the government and the private sector. These incentives, along with sales and service tax (SST) incentives for motor vehicles from 2020 to 2022, have been driving factors in the growth of household debt.
