Without committing to a specific timeline, Amir said Putrajaya planned to first see through the rollout of the targeted diesel subsidy.
“We must think about how we implement our targeted subsidies (in general). Right now, the government’s priority is the diesel subsidy.
“When we have reached (some) stability with the diesel subsidy, then we will see what needs to be done next,” he told a press conference on the sidelines of the 2024 Sasana Symposium at Sasana Kijang here today.
He was commenting on Maybank Investment Bank’s (MIB) indication that the price of RON95 petrol needed to be increased by 32 sen per litre or 15.6% starting from July 1 for the government to achieve RM4.1 billion in savings to reach the target of reducing subsidies expenditure by RM11.5 billion in the 2024 budget.
MIB’s chief economist, Suhaimi Ilias, was quoted by Astro Awani on Monday as saying that if targeted subsidies for RON95 started on Oct 1, the price would need to be increased by 65 sen per litre, or 31.7%, in order to achieve the RM4.1 billion target in the fourth quarter of 2024.
The ceiling price for RON95 is currently maintained at RM2.05 per litre.
In his opening speech at the symposium earlier, Amir said the government had taken the bold step of implementing the targeted diesel subsidy, given the current macroeconomic environment, with solid growth and moderating inflation.
“The government took it in its stride to cut the billion ringgit losses from the massive leakages through smuggling and misappropriation of diesel subsidy, which had impeded the nation’s economic growth and public delivery system for years,” he said.
He gave an assurance the targeted subsidy policy was not an “overnight whim”, but a carefully thought-out mechanism to cushion daily goods from its impact, keeping profiteering at bay and protecting the vulnerable segment of society from price hikes.
On Monday, the price of diesel was raised from RM2.15 per litre to RM3.35, but only in West Malaysia.
The rate is the unsubsidised market price for the commodity, based on the average for May. The diesel price will be reviewed every week.