They get higher commission on sales; banks will be asked to cut charges on credit card payments

The Malaysian government has raised the commission for petrol stations after operators
threatened to reject credit card sales to avoid paying bank charges. The swift move has
averted possible chaos at petrol stations after 400 operators in northern Malaysia
announced that they planned to stop accepting credit cards from end of June 2008.

“I have approved the increase with immediate effect,”

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Samad said. He said his ministry is negotiating with the banks to reduce the credit card charges from 1 per cent
to 0.5 per cent of the sale amount.

Most stations are still accepting credit cards, although there have been reports of petrol stations in some parts
of Kuala Lumpur refusing to do so. The confusion is compounded by rumours of a petrol station strike in Sabah, causing thousands of motorists to rush to fill up recently. But the situation is back to normal after the Petroleum Dealers' Association clarified that there is no strike.