Economics

Malaysia Says Mulling New Taxes Once the Economy Recovers

  • Finance ministry looking at consumption tax, including GST
  • Government maintaining its 6.5%-7.5% GDP forecast for now
WATCH: Malaysian Finance Minister Zafrul Abdul Aziz discusses the economy, the stimulus package and the country’s 5G rollout plan. (Source: Bloomberg)
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Malaysia’s government will pay more attention to economic sectors most affected by the pandemic such as tourism and retail, and will wait for the recovery to gain traction before considering any new taxes, the country’s finance minister said Friday.

The Finance Ministry is studying the possibility of a consumption tax, but “we have decided this is not the right time to introduce any new form of taxation,” Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “After the economy has recovered, we really need to relook at widening our revenue base.”