PETALING JAYA: The federal government saw weaker gains from its investments with dividends dipping by RM9.756bil in 2023, a 17% drop compared to 2022.
The dividends received decreased to RM46.059bil in 2023, down from RM55.815bil in 2022, according to the Auditor-General’s Report Series 3 released on Monday (Oct 14).
The report attributed this decline to reduced dividends received from eight government-linked companies (GLCs) and one statutory body, which dropped by 22.4% to RM42.786bil in 2023.
"The GLCs with the sharpest decline were Petroliam Nasional Berhad and Prokhas Sdn Bhd, with dividends falling by RM10bil (20%) and RM49.71mil (89.3%), respectively, compared to 2022," the report stated.
Additionally, dividends from Bank Negara Malaysia decreased by RM2.25bil (45%) to only RM2.75bil in 2023 compared to the RM5bil it received in 2022.
The report also highlighted that Syarikat Jaminan Pembiayaan Perniagaan Berhad did not declare any dividend payments in 2023, despite recording a profit, whereas it had previously paid RM7.26mil in dividends to the federal government in 2022.
