No reason to hike sugar price, finance ministry tells MSM Malaysia
PETALING JAYA : The finance ministry has urged sugar manufacturer and refinery MSM Malaysia to refrain from hiking the price of white sugar once the revised sales and service tax (SST) takes effect next month.
The ministry said that MSM Malaysia was eligible to apply for tax exemptions for raw sugar and was benefitting from monthly incentives from the government to ensure stable supply and prices.
'Refiners and manufacturers of sugar in Malaysia can seek exemption on their upstream costs. This is provided for under Item 1, Column (2), Schedule B of the Sales Tax (Persons Exempted from Payment of Tax) Order.
'Therefore, there should not be any increase in price for refined sugar,' it said in a statement today.
MSM Malaysia is one of two sugar refineries in the country, the other being Central Sugars Refinery Sdn Bhd.
The ministry also reiterated that white sugar would remain untaxed in the new SST scheme as it falls under the category of essential goods, to avoid inflating the cost of living for the majority.
Yesterday, MSM Malaysia's group CEO Syed Feizal Syed Mohammad said that the new 5% SST on raw sugar was expected to put pressure on input costs and push up refined sugar prices for industrial buyers.
He said MSM was seeking clarification from the government regarding the new tax scheme, which kicks in on July 1, The Edge Malaysia reported.
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