Malaysia's Contingent Liabilities Has Slowed, Says Moody's

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 (Bernama) -- The growth in Malaysia's contingent liabilities has slowed, Moody's Investors Service said. Its Vice-President and Senior Credit Officer, Sovereign Risk Group, Christian de Guzman said currently, the growth in Malaysia government guaranteed outstanding, whether sukuk or conventional, has actually come down. "We didn't see the pick up of the whole of government account debt whether guarantee or direct liability compared to the share of gross domestic product (GDP), not (as large) as the first few years of Malaysia's Economic Transformation Programme (ETP)," he said at a media roundtable briefing on "GCC & Islamic Finance: Volatile Oil Pressures and Islamic Credit Trends" here Tuesday. The international ratings agency is predicting oil prices to stay range bound with medium-term range until 2018 at between US$40 and US$60 per barrel. However, de Guzman said although Malaysia's contingent liabilities has slowed that does not mean that the risk is totally off. "We are well aware that the government is looking to slow down (government guarantee) because of concerns expressed," he added. --BERNAMA