KUALA LUMPUR: MSM Malaysia Holdings Berhad Group Chief Executive Officer Syed Feizal Syed Mohammad said the company had since May 2021 urged the government to increase the retail price of white sugar to offset the rising production cost, but to no avail.

However, he said there had been good progress in their negotiations of late, and MSM hoped the government would respond positively within a month or two.

Syed Feizal told Sin Chew Daily sugar refinery had become unprofitable under the rising production and transportation costs, unless the government allows retail price to increase by at least RM1 per kg.

White sugar is now retailed at RM2.85 per kg.

Currently the ceiling price of refined sugar is set at RM2.69 per kg, while maximum profits for wholesalers and retailers have been set at eight sen each.

The retail price of white sugar has only been increased by a mere one sen per kg over the last ten years.

Due to the rising cost of raw materials and natural gas, MSM has been suffering four consecutive quarterly net losses in FY 2022.

The company recorded RM178,712,000 in net loss for the financial year ended December 31, 2022.

Syed Feizal also said Malaysia’s retail sugar price is the lowest among ten Asean countries, and is even lower than sugar-producing countries like India, Brazil and China.