Is Malaysia in middle-income trap?

THE next six years will be a crucial period for Malaysia, as it strives to break out of the middle-income rank to become what World Bank would categorise as a “high-income nation”.

Indeed, with a gross national income (GNI) per capita of US$9,820 (RM32,235) in 2012, Malaysia is already on the cusp of graduating from an upper-middle income to a high-income economy, which, according to World Bank’s definition in 2012, is one with a GNI per capita of more than US$12,615.