Malaysia's household debts seen rising

Dampener: The Real Property Gains Tax and abolishment of Developer Interest Bearing Scheme willl contribute to slower loan growth this year.

PETALING JAYA: Analysts expect loan growth to slow down this year but household debts to continue to rise despite measures taken by Bank Negara to cool lending in this segment.

For this year, analysts are forecasting loan growth to moderate between 8% and 10% compared with about 11% last year due to various prudential measures implemented by the central bank since July last year targeting mortgage and personal loan segments.