Be thrifty and save to face possible recession - Tengku Razaleigh

Former Finance Minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah today advised the people to remain thrifty and save in the eventuality of an economic recession.

He said the current economic situation was not due to weakness on the part of the government but due to external factors which were also affecting other countries.

He said the people must understand what is going on and not hurl accusations against the government.

However, Tengku Razaleigh said the commodity sector was not affected by the economic slowdown.

"Palm oil prices are still holding up as our main export market is China and India," he said before presenting cash and electrical items to floods victims from Felda schemes here today.

Tengku Razaleigh said the palm oil industry was only facing stiff competition from Indonesia but was still performing well in the export market.

He also said Malaysia imported crude oil as it was suitable for all purposes and exported high quality crude oil to reap handsome gains.

"We are aware of peoples' criticism regarding this but maybe they are not aware of the actual situation and what the government is doing," he added.