SUBSIDY RESTRUCTURING IMPLEMENTED IN A CONTROLLED AND TARGETED MANNER - MOF

KUALA LUMPUR, March 5 (Bernama) -- The restructuring of subsidies has been implemented in a controlled and targeted manner so as not to burden the majority of the population, particularly low- and middle-income groups.

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) said this approach allows assistance to be more accurately targeted, reduces leakages, and ensures that fiscal resources are used more efficiently and progressively.

“From a macroeconomic perspective, the restructuring of subsidies has not triggered widespread price pressures.

“The inflation rate based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) shows a declining trend, from 2.5 per cent in 2023 to 1.8 per cent in 2024, and further to 1.4 per cent in 2025,” the ministry said in a written reply in the Dewan Negara today.

The MoF was responding to a question from Senator Datuk Halim Suleiman regarding the actual impact of subsidy restructuring on the cost of living for low- and middle-income households.

Referring to the Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) 2024, a national statistical instrument used to assess income patterns, expenditure, and the socio-economic well-being of households, the ministry stated that the average monthly household spending for the B40 and M40 groups between 2022 and 2024 showed a moderate increase.

It said observations for one expenditure category, namely transportation, show that spending among the B40 group increased in a controlled manner from about RM311 to RM320 per month between 2022 and 2024.

Meanwhile, for the M40 group, spending increased from around RM575 to RM606 per month during the same period.

-- BERNAMA