Subsidised cooking oil allegedly sold for prayer use in Malaysia's Penang
Penang Hindu Association (PHA) is claiming that some bottles containing prayer oil, sold at nearly RM9 per litre, are actually just ordinary, subsidised Malaysian cooking oil, which can be purchased for RM2.50 per litre.
Its president Datuk P. Murugiah urged the authorities to clamp down against the practice.
He claimed that unscrupulous suppliers were making a profit margin of over 228%, adding that subsidised cooking oil was meant for low-income households.
'We found that most of the 'prayer oil' sold in the state, especially in temple supply stores, is actually repackaged subsidised cooking oil, originally priced at RM2.50 per litre.
'One particular brand is now being sold at RM8.20 per litre in the open market as oil for ritual use. Some brands cost even more.
'The practice, if left unchecked, will defeat the purpose of the subsidy meant for the B40 group,' he added.
Introduced to help keep daily essentials affordable, Malaysia's subsidised cooking oil comes in locally packed polybags.
Murugiah said any loophole in the system would put pressure on domestic oil supplies and affect both consumers and honest retailers alike.
'The issue is not new. In 2023, the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry caught a trader repackaging subsidised cooking oil into different bottles and selling it as prayer oil at high prices.
'Some suppliers even resorted to using colour dyes in the oil to deceive the authorities.
'We hope the ministry will look into this and carry out frequent spot checks at retail outlets, especially those selling religious paraphernalia,' he said.
Murugiah said the association also wanted clearer labelling regulations.
'We urge the ministry to compel prayer oil traders to declare the source of their products and clearly list the retail price on the packaging.
'This is in line with labelling laws and to ensure consumers are not misled,' he said.
He added that the association also supported a nationwide rollout of the Cooking Oil Price Stabilisation Scheme (eCOSS), designed to track the supply of subsidised oil from refinery to retail.
He said eCOSS could plug the loopholes currently exploited by rogue suppliers.
He urged consumers to stay alert and check the source of the oil purchased for prayer use.
'It is important not to be misled by unscrupulous parties,' he added.
Penang Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) director S. Jegan said action would be taken against anyone involved in the misuse of subsidised goods.
He said the ministry was consistently monitoring the use of cooking oil, not only supply issues, but also its misuse, including for religious rituals as highlighted by PHA.
'However, we have not received any official complaints on this matter.
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Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Straits Times
She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey
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AsiaOne
a day ago
- AsiaOne
9 best personal loans in Singapore with lowest interest rates (August 2025), Money News
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We'll use the example of a Singapore citizen earning $3,500 a month, who wants to borrow $10,000 and repay it over three years. Personal loan Interest rate and Effective Interest Rate (EIR) Processing fee Monthly repayment Eligibility DBS/POSB Personal Loan 1.99per cent (EIR 4.17per cent) 1per cent ~$294 – Singaporean/PR – Foreigners with existing Cashline and/or Credit Card account – Min. S$20,000 annual income – Existing DBS/POSB customers Trust Instant Loan 1.99per cent (EIR: 3.80per cent) 0per cent ~$294 – Singapore Citizen/PR: $30,000 – Foreigner: $60,000 – Must have a Trust credit card CIMB Personal Loan 1.86per cent (EIR 3.56per cent) 0per cent ~$319 – Singapore Citizen/PR: $20,000 – Malaysian (residing in SG): $30,000 UOB Personal Loan 1.85per cent (EIR 3.40per cent) 0per cent ~$293 – Singapore Citizen/PR: $30,000 – UOB Credit Card/CashPlus customer Standard Chartered CashOne 1.60per cent (EIR: 3.07per cent) 0per cent ~$283 – Singapore Citizen/PR: $30,000 – Foreigner (with EP): $90,000 GXS FlexiLoan 1.88per cent (EIR 3.47per cent) 0per cent ~$302 – Singapore Citizen/PR: $20,000 HSBC Personal Loan 2.20per cent (EIR: 4.00per cent) 0per cent ~$296 – Singaporean/PR: $30,000 (salaried workers)$40,000 (self-employed or commission-based workers) – Foreigner (with EP): $60,000 Citi Quick Cash with Ready Credit (New Customers) 3.45per cent (EIR: 6.50per cent) 0per cent ~$306 – Singaporean/PR: $30,000 – Foreigner: $42,000 Applicable to new Citi Credit Card or Citibank Ready Credit account holders only. 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Processing fees This is the main hidden cost of personal loans and is worth highlighting. The processing fee is deducted from the principal—meaning, for a $10,000 loan with a $100 (or 1per cent) processing fee, you get only $9,900 in cash. As a borrower, you might not 'feel' it, but it does eat into your funds and increase the cost of borrowing. Now, let's walk through the nine featured personal loan packages. 3. DBS/POSB Personal Loan The DBS/POSB personal loan is only open to existing DBS/POSB customers. If you already have (1) a DBS/POSB Cashline account or have a DBS/POSB credit card and (2) credit your salary into a DBS or POSB deposit account, you can get the cash disbursed instantly. The loan is open to Singaporeans and PRs, as well as foreigners with DBS/POSB Cashline or credit card accounts. 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Trust's personal loan, called Trust Instant Loan, disburses cash to you in just 60 seconds with the Trust credit card. This is how it works: You have a Trust credit card with a certain available credit balance at any one point in time. The Trust Instant Loan converts a portion of that balance into cash for you. Spend that cash on anything you want! The Trust Instant Loan is open to all Trust customers. Given how it works, as I just explained above, you do need to have a Trust credit card to be eligible. But this isn't a bad thing — for one thing, it makes repaying the loan seamless. Each month, you'll see your loan instalment charged to your credit card bill. To pay the instalment, simply pay through your credit card statement via your Trust App. The Trust Instant Loan is also extra affordable with an interest rate starting from just 1.99 per cent p.a. (EIR from 3.80 per cent p.a.). They also charge no processing fees, annual fees, or the like. However, there is a three per cent early repayment fee on your remaining loan amount if you repay the rest of your loan early. The Trust Instant Loan is open to Singapore Citizens, PRs, and Foreigners aged 21 to 65 years old. You could be a salaried worker, commission-based, or self-employed as long as your annual income is $30,000 for Singaporeans or $60,000 for Foreigners. Trust Instant Loan x MoneySmart promotion Snag awesome welcome gifts when you apply for a Trust Instant Loan with MoneySmart. Up to $1,200 cash via PayNow Apple iPhone 16 Plus (worth $1,399) Apple iPad Air (worth $899) Sony PS5 (SLIM) Digital (worth $669) PLUS S$10 FairPrice E-Vouchers from Trust (if you sign up with referral code MONEYSMT). New-to-Trust customers only. T&Cs apply. 5. CIMB Personal Loan The CIMB Personal Loan is another personal loan that comes with no processing fees. Its interest rate comes in at 1.86 per cent p.a. (EIR 3.56 per cent p.a.), making it the next lowest after Trust. You also get flexible loan tenure options of 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60 months. On top of low interest rates, CIMB is also offering a 10 per cent cashback promotion and a $188* welcome gift to sweeten the deal. As far as eligibility goes, the CIMB Personal Loan is fairly standard. It's open to Singapore Citizens and Singapore PRs with a minimum annual income of $20,000, and to Malaysians earning at least $30,000 a year. You'll also need to be 21 to 70 years old-that maximum age sits between the Citibank and DBS personal loan age limit. There's no prerequisite to have a CIMB Bank Account or CIMB credit card before you apply, so go ahead as long as you meet the criteria above. Like any personal loan, you'll incur a penalty fee if you try to repay it early. For the CIMB Personal Loan, this fee is 3per cent of the outstanding loan amount or $250, whichever is higher. *T&Cs apply. 5. UOB Personal Loan UOB's personal loan is only open to existing UOB credit cardholders or CashPlus customers who are Singaporeans, PRs aged 21 to 65. You'll also need to be a salaried worker earning at least $30,000 a year. Not an existing UOB customer? You'll have to get a UOB credit card or CashPlus to apply for a UOB Personal Loan. The interest rate is from 1.85 per cent p.a. for loan periods of 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60 months , with a 3.40 per cent p.a. EIR . While UOB used to only waive processing fees for loan periods 24 months and up, processing fees are now waived for all loan periods . If you're an existing UOB customer, you can get instant approval when you apply for your personal loan online. To further sweeten the deal, from now till Aug 31, 2025, you can get up to two per cent cash rebates for approved personal loans worth at least S$15,000 with repayment period between of 3-5 years. UOB Personal Loan x MoneySmart promotion (Gift fulfilment as fast as 4 weeks) Thinking of applying for a UOB Personal Loan? Apply via MoneySmart now to get a $500 bonus on top of gifts such as: Up to $1,200 cash via PayNow Apple iPhone 16 Plus (worth $1,399) Apple iPad (11-inches) (worth $899) Apple Watch Series 10 (worth $599) T&Cs apply. 6. Standard Chartered CashOne Standard Chartered CashOne personal loan is open to Singapore Citizens, PRs and foreigners with a Singapore Employment Pass aged 21 and above. The barriers to entry for the Standard Chartered CashOne personal loan have gone up slightly. The minimum annual income requirements are now $30,000 for Singaporeans and PRs and $90,000 for foreigners. You also don't necessarily need to be a salaried worker to apply — Standard Chartered is cool with salaried employees, variable/commission-based employees, and even self-employed individuals. You can apply for this personal loan online by signing in through Singpass and receive your loan disbursement within 15 minutes-it's super easy. There's no need to be an existing Standard Chartered customer to get this personal loan. So, it's fast — but is it also affordable? Standard Chartered charges an initial annual fee of $199 (deducted from your approved loan) for any loan tenure between one to five years. From the second year onwards, you won't have to pay any more annual fees — unless you miss any instalments, in which case you will pay $50 in annual fees for that year. Plus the late payment fee of $100. If you pay your full monthly instalment on time for the first six months, you won't have to worry about late penalties. After that, you'll have the flexibility to pay just the minimum — whichever is lower: $50 or one per cent of your approved monthly principal. So taking the $199 annual fee into consideration, I'd say CashOne is more worthwhile if you're taking out a big loan. Interest rates are advertised as starting from 1.60 per cent (lowest I've ever seen it), working out to an EIR of 3.07 per cent and above. In reality, interest rates are personalised, so yours might differ from this example. Standard Chartered CashOne x MoneySmart promotion Apply for a Standard Chartered CashOne loan via MoneySmart to get attractive gifts like: Up to $1,200 cash via PayNow Apple MacBook Air (13-inch)(worth $1,499) Apple iPad (11-inch)(worth $899) Sony PS5 (SLIM) Digital Edition (worth $669) T&Cs apply. 7. HSBC Personal Loan HSBC's personal loan is open to Singaporeans and PRs aged 21 to 65 years old with an annual income of $30,000 and above for salaried workers, and $40,000 for self-employed or commission-based workers. Foreigners must earn at least $60,000 a year and have an employment pass with at least six months' validity. The best part about HSBC's personal loan is its long loan tenure of up to seven years — currently the longest loan tenure in Singapore. So if you need to borrow a large sum but can't afford high monthly repayments, HSBC's personal loan is definitely one you should consider. HSBC has dropped their promotional interest rates even further now starting from 2.20 per cent p.a. with an EIR from 4.00 per cent p.a. with no processing fees. Remember, however, that actual interest rates will vary from person to person. Another factor to consider is that HSBC's personal loan comes with an annual fee of $120, and only the first year's fee is waived. Don't miss your payments, or you'll be subject to a $120 late payment fee. 8. GXS FlexiLoan GXS is a digital bank that's 60 per cent owned by Grab and 40 per cent owned by Singtel. Now, don't be dissuaded by the idea of a digital bank. Like any regular bank, GXS offers customers a personal loan — and a pretty good one at that. With a loan tenure between two and 60 months, GXS FlexiLoan interest rates start from 1.88 per cent p.a., with an EIR of 3.47 per cent p.a.. However, up till Aug 31, 2025, you could enjoy one per cent OFF your Interest Rate (awarded in the form of cashback) when you apply for a $10,000 loan with 12 month tenure with the code "MSDEAL". There's also an exciting SG60 promotion going on where GXS will cover all your interest for the first 60 days. This means you enjoy a completely interest-free period right at the start, potentially saving you hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars. Simply name your loan "SG60" when you apply. On top of all that, GXS FlexiLoan doesn't charge any annual, processing, early repayment or late fees — something almost unheard of when it comes to loans from your traditional banks. You heard that right, repay your loan early with no extra charges! However, GXS will charge you late interest if your repayments are late, so you won't get off scot-free. One downside to the GXS FlexiLoan is that foreigners aren't eligible. It's only for Singapore Citizens and Singapore Permanent Residents between 21 and 65 years old. The minimum annual income is $20,000. GXS FlexiLoan x MoneySmart promotion (Gift fulfilment as fast as 2-3 months) Apply for a GXS FlexiLoan via MoneySmart and get your hands on a bonus $500 cash along with some incredible welcome gifts: Up to $1,200 cash Apple MacBook Air (13-inch)(worth $1,499) T&Cs apply. 10. Citibank Quick Cash with Ready Credit (New Customers) I'm going to preface this by saying that the 3.45 per cent (EIR from 6.5 per cent) interest rate for the Citi Quick Cash personal loan is only available to customers who are completely new to Citibank loans. If you already have a Citibank loan, you'll be given a higher interest rate. The plus point for this one is definitely the ease of getting your funds. You'll be easily able to convert the credit balance on your Citi Credit Card or Citibank Ready Credit account into cash. Just log into the Citi Mobile App, key in the amount of cash you need and you can get the funds pretty much instantly. Citi Quick Cash is open to Singapore Citizens and PRs (salaried or self-employed) with a minimum annual income of $30,000, and foreigners with an annual income of at least $42,000. The eligible age range is 21 to 65 years. With Citibank's Quick Cash personal loan, you can choose a tenure of 12, 24, 36, 48, or 60 months-all with zero processing fees. You'll get a 3.56 per cent interest rate on Citibank's personal loan with a shorter 1-year tenure, or 3.45 per cent if you intend to extend your loan repayment to three years. While the interest rates differ according to tenure period, you'll get an EIR of 6.5 per cent for all. That said, don't take our word for it. Rates are customised, so what you get might not be exactly the same as the above screenshot. 11. OCBC ExtraCash Personal Loan While the OCBC ExtraCash Personal Loan has the highest interest rates (from 5.42 per cent p.a. / EIR from 10.96 per cent p.a.) on this list, it does come with some perks that might make it a solid choice for some. If you need a large loan, you can borrow up to six times your monthly income, with fixed repayments spread over 12 to 60 months. Like many of the other loans mentioned, it offers fast disbursement when you sign up via Myinfo. Plus, it has a relatively low entry requirement — just $20,000 in annual income for Singaporeans and PRs. You'll also be able to easily see a full breakdown of all your outstanding payments via internet banking. However, punctual repayments are a must. A late payment will set you back $80, and if you decide to restructure or repay early, you'll be charged a 3per cent fee on your outstanding balance. So, be sure of your loan tenure before committing! 12. Which personal loan should you choose? Whatever personal loan package you choose, opt for the smallest loan amount and shortest term you can comfortably manage . This will keep your interest payments to a minimum. Remember that the actual interest rate a bank offers you will depend on factors like your credit history, how much you want to borrow and for how long. So if you don't get offered the lowest advertised interest rates with one bank, you might want to compare that with what the other banks are willing to offer you. There are certain groups of individuals that may have a harder time taking out a personal loan. Older individuals : If you're above 65 years old, DBS/POSB and CIMB will let you apply for personal loans up to the age of 70 years. Those earning an annual income below $30,000 : Most of the loans I've listed above have a minimum requirement of about $20,000 annual income, so you have plenty of options if this pertains to you. Commission-based workers or self-employed individuals : Citibank Quick Cash, HSBC Personal Loan, DBS Personal Loan and Standard Chartered CashOne are good options. Some other banks may only accept salaried workers. 13. Term loan vs credit line - which should you choose? While researching personal loans, you might have come across many different loan types, some of which do not seem to fit what we described above. MoneySmart lists only term personal loans, which is when you borrow a fixed sum with a fixed repayment plan that you agree on before you see the cash. We usually recommend these loans because they have much lower interest rates. You can pay back slowly and steadily at a pace comfortable to your financial situation. Many banks also offer a personal line of credit-sometimes called a credit line, revolving loan, or even "flexible repayment loan". This is a pre-approved amount of money you can cash out in part or whole, but you need to repay it ASAP or else face sky-high interest rates. Don't fall for it unless you're absolutely confident you can pay the money back immediately. These days, most banks base their personal loans on either your personal line of credit or credit card limit. So you will need either a credit card or credit line to get the loan. However, it is still considered a term loan if it comes with a structured repayment plan. But before you sign up, understand that your credit cards with this bank will be as good as dead because you'll have effectively "spent" your credit on a cash loan. 14. Being in debt is not fun… But it can be prevented. If you must take out a loan, channel all your energies into paying it off on time to avoid late charges. In the meantime, re-examine your income and budget, making a note of everything you spend on, so you won't have to resort to loans again. Ideally, you should draw up a budget that gives you enough leeway to set aside some cash for the future without starving to death. You should also build up an emergency fund worth a few months' expenses. If you're hit with unforeseen circumstances, you can dip into this fund instead of having to take a loan. It's also a good idea to know what types of insurance you need. We recommend hospitalisation insurance at a bare minimum, and life insurance if you have dependents. Being sufficiently insured ensures that you don't get hit with huge bills if the unexpected happens. [[nid:720215]] This article was first published in MoneySmart .
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Straits Times
ICA to review Ong Beng Seng's PR status after he was fined for abetting obstruction of justice
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox SINGAPORE - Billionaire Ong Beng Seng's permanent residence (PR) status in Singapore will be reviewed after he was convicted and sentenced for abetting obstruction of justice. In response to queries from The Straits Times, an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) spokesperson said on Aug 15 that it will review the PR status of Singapore permanent residents who have been convicted of an offence. 'ICA will review Mr Ong Beng Seng's PR since he has been convicted and sentenced,' added the spokesperson. Ong, who is a Malaysian Citizen, was fined $30,000 on Aug 15 after he had pleaded guilty earlier to one charge of abetting the obstruction of justice in a case linked to former transport minister S. Iswaran. The judge agreed with the prosecution and defence that judicial mercy should be exercised in this case due to Ong's ill health. Ong was born in Malaysia in 1946 and came to Singapore at the age of four. He went on to work in international insurance underwriting and broking in Europe, London and South-east Asia before joining Motor & General Underwriters Investment Holdings in the late 1960s. Ong married Ms Christina Fu, herself a prominent businesswoman, in 1972. In 1975, he joined Kuo International, an oil trading company owned by his father-in-law Peter Fu. There, he made millions, accurately predicting the ups and downs of oil prices. The capital earned during this time is said to have helped finance his later investments and property developments. Ong set up Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) in 1980 and went on to acquire a number of hotels around the world, and properties in prime locations such as Orchard Road. On April 14 in an exchange filing, HPL said that Ong will step down as its managing directo r at the close of the company's annual general meeting on April 29, with the tycoon indicating he wanted to devote more time to managing his medical conditions.
