KUALA KANGSAR, June 19 (Bernama) -- The memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a peace agreement between the United States (US) and Iran is set to have a positive impact on national oil prices; however, the recovery period for oil supply is expected to take time.
Political Secretary to the Minister of Finance, Muhammad Kamil Abdul Munim, said that global oil price stability cannot be achieved immediately, and the recovery will also need to account for the increased costs of logistics, transport, and insurance incurred throughout the crisis.
“Of course, we welcome the peace agreement to resolve the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, and this will reopen routes for oil tankers as well as other merchant vessels, bringing relief to most countries affected by the crisis,” he told reporters during the Government Agencies and Perak Citizens Appreciation Ceremony at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tun Perak, here today.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim expressed optimism that the peace agreement MoU between the US and Iran could pave the way toward ending the conflict and guaranteeing peace in the Middle East.
Anwar expressed confidence in the positive developments of the negotiations, even though a final agreement between the two nations must be reached within a maximum period of 60 days.
Commenting further, Muhammad Kamil said that to mitigate the impact of the crisis, the government has implemented various measures to control the country's inflation rate, including maintaining the subsidised price of RON95 petrol at RM1.99 per liter, unlike other countries.
“Moving forward, I think the government, from time to time through the Economic Action Council, will look into the necessity of ensuring that for the next four to six months - while we wait for the situation to be fully controlled - the people are not burdened by any rising costs,” he said.
Regarding the temporary quota adjustment for the BUDI MADANI RON95 (BUDI95) initiative at 200 liters per month, he said the government would re-evaluate the implementation of the targeted petrol subsidy assistance before making any decision to either increase or maintain it, depending on the current global oil market situation.
Touching on the prime minister's official visit to Russia, he said it was a strategic move to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, particularly in trade, diplomacy, and energy.
“As we all know, this is part of the government's efforts to ensure we can diversify our resources, especially oil and energy resources. We see that Russia possesses extraordinary economic strength and potential, and Malaysia, as a small trading nation, must capitalise on all available avenues, especially through our relations with Russia,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
