KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 — The retail prices for diesel and the RON95 and RON97 petrol will be increased by 25 sen from midnight, the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry has confirmed.
In a statement, the ministry said that from 12.01am on March 1, pump prices for RON95 will be hiked to RM1.95 per litre from this month’s RM1.70, while the higher grade RON97 will be increased to RM2.25 sen from RM2 per litre.
Diesel will retail at RM1.95 per litre, up from RM1.70.
“The government will continue to monitor developments in the cost of products as well as the currency exchange rate from time to time in order to determine the retail prices of petrol and diesel in the coming months,” minister Datuk Seri Hasan Malek said in the statement.
Earlier today in Shah Alam, the minister declined to state if fuel prices will drop or increase next month, but said the government will continue with its price-reduction campaign nationwide.
“Oil price is not the main factor that determines the price of goods, but there are other factors which influence prices of goods,” he was quoted saying in national news agency Bernama.
In a statement warning of an impending hike in fuel prices, PKR’s Rafizi Ramli urged Putrajaya to consider using the estimated RM1.148 billion he claimed that Malaysians have unknowingly paid in “hidden” fuel taxes to subsidise the price hike.
The PKR secretary-general complained that thanks to the weakening of the ringgit to the US dollar, fluctuations in global oil prices would inevitably force Malaysians fork out more than they should for the commodity.
Explaining, Rafizi noted that although global crude oil prices have plunged between December 2014 and early this month, the value of the ringgit has similarly dropped, forcing Malaysians to pay higher retail prices for fuel.
“When crude oil prices increased from early this month, the higher prices incurred by Malaysians doubled because we are forced to bear both the rise in fuel prices as well as the decline in the ringgit,” he pointed out.
“Therefore, in accordance with the formula set forth by the federal government, the market price and official exchange rates, prices of RON95 and diesel with effect from March 1, 2015 are as follows: RON 95 at RM1.91 per litre, diesel at RM1.86 per litre,” Rafizi predicted.
