BUKIT MERTAJAM (Sept 1): Budget 2024, which will be tabled in October, will focus on empowering and strengthening the middle class and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), according to Deputy Finance Minister II Steven Sim Chee Keong.

He said this is because the middle class group constituted the community that was the most affected during the pandemic.

"Hence, one of the key focuses in Budget 2024 is on empowering the middle class group and reduce their burden due to the rise in the cost of living.

"The next move is to empower the SMEs in terms of increasing their business income as we know this sector can create employment opportunities as well as generate income for the people," he told reporters after attending the Penang state Budget Tour here on Friday.

One of the strategies of the Federal government is to place domestic direct investment (DDI) as among the key performance indicators to generate the country’s total investment, as previously there were many complaints from local entrepreneurs who felt they were treated as second class investors compared with foreign direct investors.

When asked on the Luxury Goods Tax, Sim said the government would hold a dialogue session with stakeholders to discuss the details before making any further announcement.

"Details including threshold value of the luxury goods on which tax will be imposed will also be discussed. We will only make further announcements after this dialogue session," he said.

Earlier in his speech at the event, Sim said Budget 2024 would support Malaysia in achieving its Madani Economy vision, namely to restore the nation’s dignity by restructuring the economy and improving the quality of life for all Malaysians.

He said the government’s mission is to focus on economic growth, fiscal resilience, competitveness, good governance, inclusive growth, jobs with meaningful salaries as well as equitable opportunities.

Penang is the third state in the tour series and the Ministry of Finance will continue the tour to all states in Malaysia which is expected to end on Sept 22 to collate information on every sector for consideration in Budget 2024.

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