May 07, 1999
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| May 07, 1999 | atimes.com | |
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| Southeast Asia YTL Corp. chief puffs Malaysia's 'phenomenal' recovery KUALA LUMPUR - Corporate leader Francis Yeoh says Malaysia's economic recovery is phenomenal, for it has come about without the social downside evident in neighboring countries whose economies were devastated by the currency crisis. ''In terms of macro numbers, we and Thailand have recovered,'' he said, ''but the fabric of our people is still intact.'' He referred to unemployment and the social chaos in other countries when banks, companies and businesses were closed down. ''We have done much more, comparatively, more so since we were accused of being mavericks for not following stifling International Monetary Fund-style policies,'' said Yeoh, who is managing director of YTL Corporation Bhd. Touching on a wide range of issues on the economy and its growth prospects in an interview with Bernama, he also said Malaysia is ahead of even Japan in addressing non-performing loans (NPLs). ''Malaysia did it, but Japan didn't do it,'' he said in reference to Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Bhd, the asset management company's acquisition of NPLs from the banking system within a short period of time while Japan was reportedly slow in removing its NPLs, forcing some big banks to close. ''Let's just not keep defending the truth, let's feed on it,'' he said, adding that the measures that have been taken proved to be wise as investors were alreading reinvesting in the country, reflected by the buoyant stock market. ''To be fair, we have achieved enough success in the measures we implemented, but what we have not done enough is publicize them, which is why we need to go on road shows to convince foreign investors of the real situation. ''For instance, the international community has been harping on Thailand's introduction of bankruptcy laws, but in Malaysia, we had them, like, forever. ''The great thing about this government is it responds fast when it has done something wrong. We didn't like making little mistakes and then continuing to defend those mistakes." Yeoh also said ''timing was everything in implementing the measures, where people who were once doubtful were now rational as they could see the results. They are less angry [and] the dust has settled,'' he said. Asked if Malaysia would achieve the 1.0 to 2.0 percent growth projected by Bank Negara Malaysia, he said, ''From the history of Malaysia's growth, the domestic economy can always produce a 2.0 percent growth while 8.0 percent is possible through foreign direct investments and other sources." If the banking system is no longer comatose and measures to acquire NPLs and unproductive assets are instituted quickly, and lending activity continues, the 2.0 percent growth is always sustainable, he said. A major supportive factor to finance the economic recovery is the high domestic savings rate of around 40 percent, he said. ''We have plenty of money around; the obvious areas as far as construction is concerned [are] for developers to stress on low and medium-cost houses, since they have no choice given that financing has been stopped for high-end properties. (Asia Pulse/Bernama) | |||||||||
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