Monday 19 November 2012

Fiscal Policy

The Malaysian Government remains flourishing the nation’s economic growth despite the challenges and uncertainties in the global economy. Malaysian economy is predicted to increase between 4.5% and 5.5% based on the prospects of a better global economy in 2013. Based on Budget 2013 of Malaysia, the Government prudently managing the economy by increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and this is where the fiscal policy steps in.


Fiscal policy can be defined as the changes in government spending and tax collections to achieve non-inflationary domestic output and full-employment. How does fiscal policy affected the GDP? According to the Budget 2013, prepared by our Prime Minister, the government is proposing that the annual income tax of an individual to be reduced by 1 percentage point for each grouped exceeding RM2,500 to RM50,000. Next, knowing that cost of higher education is a financial burden to the parents, the government proposes that the current tax relief of RM4,000 to be increased to RM6,000 per person. Government is trying to reduce the tax in order to encourage the consumers to consume more, hence increasing the consumption. Plus, a reduction in tax also shifts the aggregate demand curve to the right.

   The government is allocating a total expenditure of RM251.6 billion to Operating Expenditure and Development Expenditures, RM201.9 billion and RM49.7 billion respectively. Both expenditures are for the implementation of the country’s development projects, with focus on the well-being of citizen. Compare to Budget 2012, the expenditures have increased by RM18.8 billion. Clearly, the government planned to increase their expenditures to cause the unemployment to fall and the employed workers will have income to spend, resulting in aggregate demand to increase. Thus, the aggregate demand curve shifts rightwards.

   The fiscal policy that the government is applying is the Expansionary Fiscal Policy, where the government combines expenditures increasing and reduction of taxes to produce the desired initial increase in consumption and eventual rises in aggregate demand, from AD1 to AD2. (Diagram 1) 


   The shifting of AD curve results in raising the GDP and tax revenues automatically rises. When the tax revenue rises, the budget deficit moves slightly to the right, which means that the amount of government’s revenue will eventually exceed its expenditures. (Diagram 2)

Resources:
1. Tax Revision on Individual Income and Cooperatives
 <http://www.bnm.gov.my/files/2012/bs13.pdf#page=4>
2. 2013 Budget Allocation
<http://www.bnm.gov.my/files/2012/bs13.pdf#page=4.>

6 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  2. I never knew anything about budget 2013, here is a good start for me.

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  3. a simply yet straight-to-the-point explanation of fiscal policy.

    ReplyDelete
  4. From my point of view, it focuses more on the middle income improvement and
    it become less competitive market when government increase the spending as this would lead to the government to borrow more money from external countries, causing recessionary to be worsen . What do you suggest? How can the recession be improve?
    -Renee

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    Replies
    1. Recession can be improved by increasing the GDP of the nation. Government can increase the GDP in terms of Net Export by increasing the expenditures on the domestically produced product or they can reduce the taxes on export goods. Household can also increase their consumption by borrowing, hence increasing their spending, resulting in the shifting of AD curve to the right and increase in GDP.

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