Higher oil prices won’t disrupt 2027 development plans, says Akmal

The rise in global oil prices will not disrupt the country’s development plans under the 2027 budget, economy minister Akmal Nasir said today.

He said next year’s national development expenditure would proceed as planned, although the government would need to address the impact of rising global oil prices on subsidies and the country’s fiscal position.

“The ministry has received a commitment that development funding will continue next year,” Bernama reported him as saying.

“We recognise that while managing oil prices is an urgent or near-term matter, long-term commitments must be kept,” he said after the ministry’s monthly assembly in Putrajaya.

Akmal said global oil prices remained subject to significant uncertainties, with prices driven by a volatile energy market following geopolitical developments in West Asia.

In a Bernama report today, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said Brent crude prices fell 3.4% to US$100.34 per barrel after satellite data showed that Saudi Arabia had shifted more of its oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz following the shutdown of the East-West pipeline.

Saudi Arabia increased its crude oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz to about 2.9 million barrels per day, from around 700,000 barrels per day in August, following the disruption to the East-West pipeline.

In July, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the government expected to spend nearly RM40 billion on fuel subsidies in 2026 due to the global energy crisis, more than double the RM15 billion initially allocated under the 2026 budget.

Progressive wage policy to be evaluated by year end

Akmal also said the government would conduct a comprehensive assessment of the progressive wage policy by the end of the year or early next year to evaluate its effectiveness in raising workers’ wages.

He said the policy is currently in its implementation phase and is scheduled to run until the end of 2027, making the assessment important in determining the government’s next course of action.

Akmal said the policy should not focus solely on incentives for wage increases, but should also be accompanied by improvements in productivity, training and workers’ skills.

He also said real wages continued to grow despite inflation, citing the Malaysia Salary and Wages Survey Report 2025 released yesterday by the statistics department which recorded a 3.3% increase in real wages to RM2,104.

Akmal said wage levels must be assessed alongside the cost of living, which varies according to locality and household needs, including housing, food, transportation and education.

“Even if we push for wage increases, if the cost of living is not managed effectively, the increase will not have a significant impact,” he said.

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