TUMPAT, July 14 — The government estimates that over RM250 million in diesel leakage has been prevented from smuggling or misappropriation at petrol stations along the Peninsular Malaysia borders since targeted subsidy measures were implemented on June 10.
Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said diesel sales decreased by 23 percent or 6.5 million litres per day, while commercial diesel sales increased by 4.8 million litres per day.
He explained that when the subsidised price at petrol stations was RM2.15 per litre, industries sought to source diesel from petrol stations instead of purchasing commercial diesel at more than RM3 per litre.
"Now, with the petrol station price set at RM3.35 per litre, the industries have shifted to buying commercial diesel,” he told reporters after a working visit to the Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security (ICQS) Complex in Pengkalan Kubor here today.
"Petrol stations near the northern border have also experienced a 40 to 50 percent drop in sales, indicating a decrease in smuggling activities to neighbouring countries due to reduced profit margins for smugglers," he added.
Amir Hamzah emphasised that government agencies will sustain rigorous enforcement against diesel leakage and called on the public to assist authorities in combating diesel misappropriation and smuggling by reporting any such activities.
The implementation of targeted diesel subsidies is expected to save the country RM4 billion annually, thereby strengthening its financial position in the long term.
Meanwhile, Amir Hamzah said encouraging foreign direct investments by government-linked companies (GLCs) and government-linked investment companies (GLICs) to Malaysia, as well as monitoring the exchange of export and import revenues, are among the concerted efforts undertaken by the government to strengthen the ringgit.
He said he is confident that the country’s currency performance will improve in the second half of 2024 with integrated efforts and efficient fiscal management.
“As we can see, the ringgit yesterday was around 4.68 against the US dollar and has been consistently below the 4.70 level.
“Thankfully, in the past six months, we have seen an improvement in the ringgit’s performance due to the integrated strategy between the Finance Ministry and Bank Negara Malaysia, which has shown the ringgit strengthening,” he said.
He also stated that as of July 11, the ringgit was in the top position among regional countries with an increase of about two per cent, with the average daily trading volume in the financial market rising to US$17.6 billion.
— Bernama
