Fuel prices down by 10sen

Prices of petrol and diesel are 10 sen cheaper from midnight Wednesday.

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad said the retail price of RON97 is reduced from RM2.55 per litre to RM2.45 per litre, the price of RON92 is lowered from RM2.40 to RM2.30, while diesel is reduced from RM2.50 to RM2.40 per litre.

In reading out a statement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badaw, Shahrir said the 10 sen reduction is the maximum value that the Government could reduce.

It is also the second adjustment made by the Government.

The first adjustment to reduce the fuel price was made on Aug 23.

Shahrir said the Cabinet, which met Wednesday for the last time this month, decided to reduce the fuel price since people would start their balik kampung exodus this weekend to celebrate Hari Raya.

“It is hoped that the price reduction will reduce the burden of the people this festive season,’’ he said.

Going by the trend, Shahrir said the Government would be paying slightly more for the fuel subsidy as the average crude oil price would be only be seven sen cheaper but the Government had decided to absorb the difference and lower it to 10 sen.

Asked whether the Government would implement a free float system for fuel prices, Shahrir said it was still too early to think of such a system at this moment although it was one of the items dicussed in Cabinet with no decision made yet.

Earlier, Shahrir also announced that the consumer price index (CPI) from January to August increased by 4.8 % to 110.4 compared with that of 105.3 in the same period last year.

Compared with that of the same month in 2007, the CPI for August registered an increase of 8.5 from 105.9 to 114.9.

The CPI for August increased by 0.2% when compared with July, he said.
Despite of fuel prices lowered on Aug 22, it was not reflected in the CPI in August.

Shahrir said the CPI in September may not be lower as well as the Government had allowed a 30% increase in surcharge for buses during the festive season.