KUALA LUMPUR: The Primary Industries Ministry is optimistic that the Finance Ministry (MoF) will approve its proposal for the 3% windfall tax imposed on palm oil planters to be channelled back to the industry.
Minister Teresa Kok said she expects her 2020 wish to be granted by the MoF and has listed down several things that she needs to do next year to help stabilise crude palm oil prices, which is currently trading at almost RM2,900 per tonne against RM1,700 per tonne in December last year.
“We have a lot of things that we need to do to improve the industry, but until I get the black and white (from the MoF) I can’t do anything,” she told reporters after a closed-door media briefing session on the palm oil industry at Wisma Bernama today.
The windfall tax is a tax levied by the government on some industries which have experienced above-average profits, which is currently applicable to the palm oil industry as palm oil prices in the physical market have surpassed RM2,500 per tonne.
Hence, effective Jan 1, 2020, a 3% windfall tax per tonne would be imposed on planters in the peninsula and 1.5% on planters in Sabah and Sarawak. – Dec 17, 2019, Bernama
