KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 — Despite widespread complaints of inflation due to fluctuating fuel prices, Putrajaya today insisted that it has managed to keep the prices of goods low.

Domestic Trade Deputy Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah told the Dewan Rakyat this morning that the government is aware that traders often refuse to bring down prices according to fuel pump rates, but claimed this problem was resolved when his ministry met with business owners recently.

"We met with wholesalers, factory owners and traders and after negotiations, they agreed to adjust prices according to fuel prices," Ahmad said in a reply to Pasir Gudang Barisan Nasional MP Normala Abdul Samad.

Normala had asked how Putrajaya was planning to help Malaysians cope with inflation, which has shot up in recent months.

The latest consumer price index in April (CPI) increased 1.8 per cent to 111.9 in April 2015 compared with 109.9 recorded in the same month last year, the Statistics Department said.

However, the April inflation rate was less than economists' median estimate of 2.1 per cent in a Reuters poll.

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