SME entrepreneurs told Than Lwin Times that Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) have started to stop operating due to a shortage of fuel at gas stations in Mon State.

The SMEs have stopped their operation due to the power outage and high fuel prices within a year and a half of the military coup.

An SME entrepreneur said that the business was temporarily suspended due to the inability to buy as much fuel as needed and the skyrocketing price.

He added, "There are also power outages in the industrial zone. With the use of generators, the costs are higher. We can't purchase as much oil as we need. The business will have to be put on hold for a while".

Another SME entrepreneur said that during a year and a half of the military coup, electricity shortages and fuel crises had a negative impact on SMEs.

Currently, nearly half of SME business operations have been reduced due to the fuel crisis, and in the long run, almost all businesses may cease operations, according to SME entrepreneurs.

In Mon State, there are more than 20,000 SMEs and hundreds of thousands of workers depend on them.

However, SMEs are facing various difficulties in surviving due to the consequences of the military coup.