KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 19 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today a united Malaysia will help the country weather the economic storm expected this year due to plunging oil prices and a weakening ringgit.

Najib said this was his wish for the Chinese New Year, although he added that he is confident that Putrajaya could still drive growth despite the bleak economic outlook.

“My wish this Chinese New Year is that it would be a better year for Malaysia. Although economically we are on very strong footing with six percent (growth) last year, this year is going to be very challenging year with the drop in the price of oil.

“But I am confident that if all of us stay together, work together, pursue our common goal, we can make this year a good year for Malaysia,” Najib told reporters after attending MCA’s Chinese New Year open house here.

Despite growing concerns over the weakened ringgit and drop in government revenue due to dipping oil prices, Najib has insisted that the country is not facing an economic crisis.

Putrajaya had previously based its 2015 oil-related revenue, which accounts for nearly 30 per cent of total government revenue, on higher oil prices.

But prices have currently declined by 60 per cent from mid-2014 to trade below US$50 (RM180) per barrel, and is now forecasted to drop to as low as US$40 in the first half of this year.

The situation forced Najib to revised Budget 2015 and announced a slew of “interventions”, including a slash in operating expenditures and cutbacks on secondary spending.

Allocations for development totalling RM48.5 billion, however, was maintained.

The prime minister also revised the government’s target for its deficit reduction to 3.2 per cent of the economy versus the original 3 per cent, but pointed out that this was still lower than the 3.5 per cent registered last year.

He also said that Putrajaya can maintain a less than three percent fiscal deficit target despite the revision.