KUALA LUMPUR, April 24 — Swiss banking giant UBS has admitted that its senior officer Kelvin Tay had made wrong assertions about Malaysia’s economy when he said that the country had a current account deficit.

According to a report by Malaysiakini, the bank’s Singaporean branch said Tay, UBS’ regional chief investment officer, had also erred in saying that the removal of the Goods and Services Tax meant a higher dependence on oil revenue, during a live interview with Bloomberg TV.

UBS Singapore’s corporate communications head Adeline Lee reportedly said that Tay’s mistakes were due to the confines of the short interview.

She added that UBS "regrets any misunderstandings” as a result of Tay’s comments.

Pakatan Harapan leaders have criticised Tay as well as Bloomberg TV for airing such an interview, in which they maintain the official gave wrong facts about Malaysia’s economy.