KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 1 ― The government will not tax glove makers or any other business that made a windfall in profits during the Covid-19 pandemic for the time being, Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said.
He said imposing a windfall tax requires levying profits that exceed a certain threshold.
He added that it would be difficult for the government to fix a standard market price for consumer goods or locally manufactured products given the varied types, standards, specifications and grades.
“Although not subject to the windfall profit levy, the rubber gloves manufacturing industry contributed to spillover effects to the national economy in terms of direct and indirect taxes, in particular increased corporate income tax, while providing job opportunities throughout the Covid crisis.
“The additional profit earned by the rubber gloves industry during the pandemic can also be used by industry to reinvest and encourage investors to further expand their business in this country,” he said in a parliamentary reply last Wednesday.
The senator was Muar MP Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman who asked the government about the possibility of introducing a windfall tax to help fund the country’s Covid-19 economic recovery and cited glove manufacturers who saw their profits swell due to increased global demand during the pandemic.
