The encouraging performance of Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of 2019 (Q119) provides positive impetus for the country’s future growth, as well as strengthening investors confidence in Malaysia’s economy, says Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Describing the Q1 performance as “impressive and beyond expectations”, Lim said the result had surpassed forecasts by many international and local fund managers who had expected growth at merely 4.3 percent and below.

“We hope everybody will now have faith (in the country’s economy) just like foreign investors do and apparently they are not swayed by (any) reports that may be less positive, as they have been investing more (in the quarter) compared with past quarters,” he said.

Lim was speaking to reporters after launching Securities Commission Malaysia Fintech Roundtable 2019 in Kuala Lumpur today.

Yesterday, Bank Negara announced Malaysia’s economy grew by 4.5 percent in the first quarter of 2019 (1Q2019) with private sector activity remained the key growth driver.

On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted basis, the GDP grew by 1.1 percent.

In another development, Lim said an incentive for crowdfunding and peer-to-peer initiative for the micro, small and medium enterprises (micro-SMEs) would be introduced in the 2020 Budget.

He added the initiative, which was discussed during the closed-door roundtable, would provide financing alternative, as well as a lower cost to financing for the micro-SMEs.

- Bernama