Malaysia Likely to Extend Lockdown, Requiring Increased Stimulus and a Higher Debt Ceiling: Fitch Unit

Known as the Movement Control Order 2.0 (MCO 2.0), the lock-down which is set to end on the 26th of January 2021 will need to be extended according to the Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research, a unit of rating agency Fitch Ratings (Fitch unit).

This is given that the current third wave of COVID-19 is a stronger one compared to the previous lockdown in the second quarter of 2020 when the pandemic just hit. Fitch notes that the initial lockdown lasted for almost three months in Malaysia.

The Fitch unit noted that the recently introduced stimulus package (PERMAI) of MYR 15 billion amounts to just 1.1% of Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP), with the Fitch unit expecting its impact to be muted. As such, an extension of lockdown measures indicates t...