The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) - a mandatory savings fund for private sector workers - has declared the lowest dividend rate in 40 years, 4.25 percent for 2002.

The last time the dividend rate was lower than 5.0 percent was in 1962 when it was 4.0 percent.

The EPF said the dividend rate reflects the difficult investment environment of a low-interest-rate regime for the last four years as well as a lacklustre stock market.