HLB Upbeat on Malaysia’s Outlook, Sets 5.0% GDP Growth Forecast for 2027
HLB Upbeat on Malaysia’s Outlook, Sets 5.0% GDP Growth Forecast for 2027
Industry leaders and HLB senior management convened at the Business Matters with HLB SME customer forum to unpack the Budget 2027 beyond the headlines. Present at the event were, from left: HLB Economist Choong Yin Pheng; YM Raja Noorma binti Raja Othman, Chairman of HLB Islamic; Kuldeep Singh, HLB’s Managing Director of Global Markets; Malkit Singh, HLB’s Chief Financial Officer; Tan Sri Johan Mahmood Merican, Secretary-General of the Treasury at the Ministry of Finance; Yow Kuan Tuck, HLB’s Managing Director of Business & Corporate Banking; Dafinah Ahmed Hilmi, CEO of HLB Islamic; Datuk William Ng, National President of SAMENTA; and Ang Wei Liang, Tax Partner at PwC.
KUALA LUMPUR, 26 October 2026 – Malaysia’s Budget 2027 sets out a strategic roadmap to accelerate high-value economic growth while maintaining fiscal discipline and improving the wellbeing of Malaysians. For businesses, the focus on productivity, workforce development and targeted support presents opportunities to strengthen operational resilience, sharpen capabilities and pursue higher-value growth.
These were among the key perspectives shared at Hong Leong Bank’s (“HLB” or “the Bank”) recent SME customer forum ‘Business Matters with HLB: Budget 2027 Unpacked’. The session featured insights from Tan Sri Johan Mahmood Merican, Secretary General of the Treasury at the Ministry of Finance; Datuk William Ng, President of the Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Malaysia (“SAMENTA”), Ang Wei Liang, Tax Partner at PwC; and HLB economist Choong Yin Pheng, who shared their perspectives on the Budget’s implications for businesses and Malaysia’s economic outlook.
With a GDP growth forecast of 5.0%, HLB maintains a positive outlook on Malaysia’s economic trajectory, regarding the Government’s projected GDP growth of 4.2% to 5.2% in 2027 as realistic and achievable.
The Bank also anticipates Budget 2027 to deliver a boost to the ringgit, which it expects to appreciate gradually toward 3.97 against the US dollar over the following 12 months. This trajectory remains underpinned by Malaysia’s solid growth fundamentals, manageable inflation and sustained capital inflows.
In his opening remarks, Yow Kuan Tuck, Managing Director of Business and Corporate Banking at HLB said, “We recognise the Government’s decisive push to help Malaysian businesses sharpen their capabilities, elevate productivity, and build lasting resilience. Between shifts in global supply chains, rising overheads, and evolving workforce dynamics, the core challenge for businesses extends beyond merely absorbing cost adjustments like higher minimum wages, and now includes strengthening operations to deliver higher-value output and top-line growth. To support this journey, HLB remains committed to standing alongside its clients, providing both the capital and advisory needed to build long-term competitiveness.”
With targeted financing guarantees, tax measures and support for AI and automation, offer businesses, especially SMEs, various opportunities to improve productivity and access new markets. HLB recognises the Government’s aim to raise the economic ceiling, uplift living standards, and strengthen governance through a prudent yet expansionary fiscal policy.
To read HLB’s full Budget 2027 commentary, please visit: