Downward revision in fuel prices will not be carried out despite crude oil prices falling below US$50 per barrel in the global market according to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today.

"At the moment we have not decided to do that yet but we are still watching," Abdullah was quoted as saying by Bernama.

Abdullah who is also Finance Minister cites fluctuating prices in oil prices as a reason for doing so.

"You know that oil price always fluctuates. We don't know if the oil prices will go up again.

"Given that oil prices fluctuate, any decision based at the current level will be making it difficult for the government," he said after chairing the Sixth National SME Development Council meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

Stressing that changing fuel prices was an important decision, he said: "We cannot be hasty. It is good to keep on monitoring."

"It's better if the government monitors whether the trend is for prices to decline and will not rise again and then we can determine a certain level of if there is tendency for it to increase," he said.

For the first time since May 2006, oil prices dropped below $50 a barrel on Thursday in New York after US data showed a sharp increase in crude supply in the United States, the world's top oil consumer.

Comparatively, oil prices skyrocketed to a record level of US$78.40 last July.

'We will know what to do'

Pressed further whether the government would consider bringing down the fuel price should international prices fall further, Abdullah said: "Don't ask speculative questions. We will know what to do."

"But we will always take into account the welfare of the rakyat (people)," he added.

Last February, the government announced a hefty increase in fuel prices of between 18.5 percent and 23 percent, the largest ever.

The petrol and diesel prices were raised to RM1.92 and RM1.58 per litre respectively. Over the past two years, the cost of petrol has since gone up by 40 percent and diesel by 102 percent.

Following this, the public took their anger to the streets on several occasions. One of the protests saw the police using strong force, leading to what is now popularly known as the 'Bloody Sunday' incident.

In January, Bernama reported that Second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop rebutted rumours of an impending hike in fuel prices.

"If you are asking about petrol price increase, the answer is no," he said.