00:00An economist said the government needs to increase welfare aid to the poor to cope with
00:06the effects of the US-China trade war, which could trigger a rise in the inflation rate.
00:12University Kuala Lumpur's Aimi Zulhazmi Abdul Rashid said the trade war would see import
00:18tariff hikes, which in turn could disrupt the supply chain and cause the prices of goods
00:23to rise.
00:25He said the government might have to further increase its sumbangan tunai rahma and sumbangan
00:29asas rahma cash aid to the people in order to absorb the impact.
00:34Under the 2025 budget, Putrajaya increased its allocations for STR and SARA from RM10
00:41billion to RM13 billion.
00:43The aid schemes benefit 9 million recipients.
00:47Ahmad Razman Abdul Latif of Putra Business School said the increase in aid could be financed
00:52through savings from targeted subsidies, including for RON95, which is expected to amount to
00:57RM8 billion.
00:59University Putra Malaysia's Chakrin Udit said the targeted RON95 subsidies should be
01:05rolled out in stages alongside additional mechanisms to protect the welfare of affected
01:10segments of the community.
01:12Chakrin also reminded the government to take long-term measures to safeguard the people's
01:17well-being, such as strengthening the local agricultural sector through the use of modern
01:21technologies like artificial intelligence and regenerative farming models.
01:27Natasha Bust, FMT.
Comments