KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 ― Lim Guan Eng today said the fuel subsidy card for Malaysian middle-income earners, grouped as M40, will be rolled out from March 2020.

The finance minister said the fuel subsidy will be pumped through the special card Kad95.

"For the M40, it will be ready in March and we will use the card. We are studying it right now and once the mechanism is ready and completed, we will make an announcement,” he told reporters at the sidelines of the International Directors Summit 2019 here.

While tabling Budget 2020 last Friday, Lim told Parliament that the Kad95 allows the M40 to enjoy the fuel subsidy at a discount of 30 sen per litre, limited to 100 litres a month for car users, or 40 litres a month for motorcycle users when buying RON95 petrol.

The minister also assured Malaysians that floating the price for RON95 ― which is currently at a fixed controlled price ― would not cause its retail price to spike suddenly.

"We have made an estimate that the fuel price will be around US$62 (RM259.87) per barrel. There are parties who said it is too high or it can go too high, but this is a small probability.

"However, if there are any changes, of course we can review it again,” he added.

Under the new fuel subsidy mechanism, RON95 and diesel retail prices will be gradually floated.

It  is expected to reduce leakages and cross-border smuggling of subsidised fuel which is estimated to cost the government millions of ringgit.