KUALA LUMPUR, April 29 -- Malaysians spend most of their lives either dependent on others or drawing down savings, with only a narrow 26-year window to truly build wealth, according to new findings released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia under its National Transfer Accounts (NTA) 2022.

Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the data painted a stark but familiar picture of the country's financial lifecycle - one where income only meaningfully exceeds spending between the ages of 29 and 55.

"That period is about 26 years - your strongest earning phase which is why you must use this window wisely with spending and delaying consumption now to increase your surplus for the future," he said today during the launch cere...