Malaysian Government Acts to Ease Cooking Oil Shortage

An agreement to ease a shortage of bottled cooking oil is expected to be finalized shortly, with talks being held between government officials and cooking oil suppliers, according to the minister of domestic trade and cost living, Armizan Mohd Ali, Bernama reported last week. The minister said government intervention was needed to ensure adequate supplies of cooking oil, with Ramadan, Hari Raya Aidilfitri, and the Kaamata and Gawai festivals falling within the next three months.  

He said cooking oil companies had already begun restoring production to normal levels following the commitment of government intervention.  The rising cost of crude palm oil had led producers of bottled cooking oil to reduce production, some by 50%, to control costs. The government had decided to look into providing funds for incentives to suppliers.  The decision was made at a special briefing for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and finance minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan.