Malaysia's 1 Trillion Ringgit Government Debt Explained
- Government discloses debt guarantees and lease payments
- Finance minister pledges to honor all debt commitments
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Malaysia’s new Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng on Thursday gave a breakdown of government debt and liabilities exceeding 1 trillion ringgit ($251 billion), a figure that’s fueled market worries and raised the prospect of a credit-rating downgrade.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said this week that the number was higher than previously disclosed under the administration of ousted leader Najib Razak, partly because the state had given guarantees to companies, like 1MDB -- the investment fund at the center of a multibillion corruption scandal -- which now can’t repay its debt.