In a press conference at the Parliament lobby, he said he hoped the reduction in price would help ease the burden of buying face masks for low-income groups.

The ceiling price for three-ply face masks is currently RM1.50. It was supposed to drop to RM1.20 on Saturday.

Linggi, who announced the government’s intention to reduce the ceiling price for face masks in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday, said it might be further decreased depending on availability.

“If the price goes down further, we can expect it to be around 80 sen or cheaper, maybe 70 sen also.

“But I don’t want to promise anything,” he said, adding that factories would have to take into account how they could profitably produce face masks at these prices.

Meanwhile, the wholesale ceiling price for three-ply masks will be reduced from RM1.45 to 90 sen.