PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia: Malaysia wants to start the ball rolling and get the world to discuss how oil-producing countries should play a more prominent role in determining the price of oil instead of letting speculators have the last say on it.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Rais Yatim said he raised the matter during the Organisation of Islamic Conference Foreign Ministers meeting in Kampala, Uganda, last week and Malaysia intended to raise the issue again when it hosted the Developing-Eight Countries Summit next month.

"We will continue to talk about how the oil-producing countries should determine the price of oil at a fair level at all international or regional platforms that Malaysia participates in," he said.

"There will be the Asean Ministerial Meeting in July and the Asean Summit later and, of course, there is the United Nations General Assembly in September."

"We hope to get Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to touch on the issue in his Unga speech, to reflect Malaysia's concern about how escalating oil prices are affecting the world population," he told reporters after hosting a lunch for heads of mission of South, Central and East Asian countries yesterday.

In developing countries, people had to spend half of their income on food and fuel and, over the past three years, net oil-importing countries have transferred more than US$3tril (RM9.79tril) to oil-producing nations.

"At the current price, the annual wealth transfer is nearly US$2tril (RM6.53tril). The effects of skyrocketing oil price may result in Asian economies being forced to reduce or cut down fuel subsidies."

"This could seriously undermine and dampen our respective economic growths, which could lead to social unrest," he said, adding that getting this done was not an easy matter as speculators were big and influential.

This article was first published in The Star on June 24, 2008.