Govt loses around RM300m for every US$1 drop in oil prices, Dewan Negara told

KUALA LUMPUR: The government loses around RM300 million in oil revenue for every US$1 per-barrel drop in crude oil prices, said Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani.
Johari told the Dewan Negara that the global oil price has experienced a sudden drop, from US$115 per barrel (RM444.28) in June 2014 to US$30 per barrel in December last year.
"Just imagine how much the government lost due to the drop in global oil prices, from US$115 to US$30," he said in response to a question from Senator Datuk Dr Johari Mat.
Dr Johari had asked about the impact of the drop in oil prices on Malaysia's economy, particularly on its Gross Domestic Product.
The deputy minister replied that Malaysia was not badly impacted by the drop in oil prices as the economy was not dependent on the industry.
"In 2014, the oil industry only contributed about 30% to our revenue. This was reduced to 19% in 2015 and expected to drop to 14% this year.
"Despite the drastic drop in oil prices, the impact on us is not massive as our economy is diversified," Johari said.
He added that the country's revenue came mostly from the services and manufacturing sectors.
On the number of Malaysians in the oil and gas industry affected by the price drop, Johari said only 893 workers were laid off.
"We have a workforce of around 103,000 in the mining industry, with 90% from the oil and gas sector.
"From that, only 893 workers were affected by the price drop. Thus, the impact is not that drastic," he said.