Malaysian Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli (Photo: malaymail.com) Kuala Lumpur (VNA) - Malaysian EconomyMinister Rafizi Ramli has announced that the country will reduce petrol subsidiesthis year to reduce its fiscal deficit.
The minister revealed that the government is currentlyon track to concentrate its aid on helping the poor and “manage the sequence”of the reduction.
Malaysia's MYR hit near its lowest level in 26 yearssince the 1998 Asian financial crisis. The currency has depreciated by about 4%since the start of 2024 and was hovering near its lowest level since the Asian financial crisis of1998.
Malaysia is currently subsidising most of its fuel andcooking oil prices, putting a strain on the Southeast Asian nation's budget.The government plans to narrow the budget deficit from 5% of GDP in 2023 to4.3% this year. If successful, the government will save up to 2 billionUSD a year and switch to direct distribution to the poor.
The country intended to phase out blanket subsidies for RON95fuel, which is the most widely used and economical gasoline variant, which constitutedthe majority of the 81 billion MYR (16.9 billion USD) spent on subsidies lastyear./.
