18/08/2025

BIZ & FINANCE MONDAY | AUG 18, 2025

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Casual and miscellaneous receipts can be taxed

Macra: Malaysia able to meet demand for cooling of data centres

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is currently able to meet the influx of data centre cooling demand, said Malaysian Air-Condi tioning and Refri geration Association (Macra) president Peter Tan ( pic ). He said the Ű BY HAYATUN RAZAK sunbiz@thesundaily.com

SDS Group acquires factories, other assets from Mamee Bakery KUALA LUMPUR: SDS Group Bhd’s indirect wholly owned subsidiary, SDS Top Baker Sdn Bhd, has entered into agreements to acquire bakery factories, machinery and related assets from Mamee Bakery Sdn Bhd for a total purchase consideration of RM28 million. SDS Top Baker is a wholly owned subsidiary of SDS Food Manufacturing Sdn Bhd, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of SDS Group. Under the first agreement, SDS Top Baker will acquire seven parcels of land in Plentong, Johor Bahru, together with factories erected on them, from Mamee for RM26 million. The second agreement covers the purchase of the entire production lines – machinery, equipment and tools associated with the factories – as well as registered trademarks and production knowhow, for RM2 million. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, SDS Group said the acquisitions are in line with its strategic plans to expand production capacity and enhance its operational capabilities in the bakery segment. “The proposed acquisitions aligns with the group’s investment objective and support its long-term strategic plan for future expansion, in particular, to strengthen the group’s manufacturing capabilities and operational scalability. “This will better position the group to meet rising customer demand and evolving consumer preferences,“ it said. The proposed acquisitions, it added, are not expected to have any material impact on the earnings or earnings per share of the group for the financial year ending March 31, 2026. They are expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2026. – Bernama In the current atmosphere, proving that a receipt is a gift is not easy. It must be genuine, and there should not be any consideration or expectation of any benefit in return. It should be made gratuitously, and it should be made out of love, affection and support to the donee, and the donor should have the capacity to make the donation, and the intention of the donation must be very clear. Overall, the gift must be an act of generosity and expecting nothing in return. Similarly, a windfall gain is not easy to prove. It should be sudden, unexpected and should not be deliberate, nor should it be through an organised activity. OUR is comprehensive and is designed to catch all income with very few exceptions. You do not need to be in business to be taxed. Even ordinary individuals receiving casual, miscellaneous, isolated receipts could be caught within the income tax net. Escaping from tax is only available for genuine gifts, receipts of a capital nature, windfall gains and certain types of foreign sourced income received in Malaysia. Taking advantage of these exceptions will certainly invite the challenge by the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) because the burden of proof lies with the taxpayer. income tax law

KUALA LUMPUR: Heineken Malaysia Bhd posted a dip in earnings for the second quarter and first half of financial year 2025 (FY25) as softer consumer sentiment and cost pressures weighed on its performance. For the quarter ended June 30, 2025 (Q2’25), revenue fell 5% to RM540 million compared with RM565 million in the same quarter last year. Profit before tax (PBT) slipped 9% to RM109 million from RM120 million, while net profit came in at RM83 million, down from RM91 million previously. Cumulatively, the brewer booked RM1.30 billion in revenue for the first half of FY25, a 4% drop from RM1.35 billion in the same period a year earlier. PBT eased 4% year-on-year to RM270 million, while net profit slid to RM205 million from RM214 million. The group attributed the softer results to cautious spending, the timing of Chinese New Year celebrations and continued investments in its commercial and digital transformation initiatives. Managing director Martijn van Keulen ( pic ) said the evolving market environment had tested the group’s resilience but reaffirmed its commitment to the EverGreen strategy. “The first six months of 2025 have been marked by a dynamic and evolving market landscape. Although we saw a moderation in consumer demand following the festive season and more cautious spending, our focus remains clear as we are committed to delivering our EverGreen strategy,” he said on Friday. The brewer has been channelling invest ments into its digital backbone, a transformation programme aimed at streamlining processes, How is it taxed? All casual miscellaneous income which does not fall within the other provisions in the Income Tax Act is likely to be caught under this “sweeping up” provision which states in Section 4(f) that all gains and profits not falling under any of the foregoing paragraphs 4(a) to 4(e) will be caught and taxed under the Income Tax Act. Although the words do not include special classes of income received by non-residents, the IRB in its public ruling has stated that similar types of income paid to non residents will also be caught within this provision. Malaysian tax residents will be taxed normally through their tax filings. Residents who are retired or who may not be filing tax returns since they are below the taxable threshold who receive one-off, isolated or miscellaneous which brings them into a taxable position will have to file tax returns in that particular year. The nature of the income can be wide, and can include receipts such as commissions, one-off assistance, payment for providing guarantees for loans or transactions, introduction payments, facilitation fees and one-off service payments. It need not be received in cash, but also in kind in the form of goods or services. Non-residents who do not file tax returns in Malaysia will be caught through the with Ű BY DEEPALAKSHMI MANICKAM sunbiz@thesundaily.com

holding tax mechanism. The tax resident who pays the non-resident will have to withhold 10% of the payment as withholding tax and remit the amount to the IRB within one month from the date of payment or crediting. Failure to deduct will result in the payer not being eligible to claim a tax deduction and will still be liable for the unpaid withholding tax together with any late payment penalties if the payment is made after the one-month period. However, the payer need not deduct the withholding tax if he has proof that the non resident is bringing such income to tax in their home country as business income. If this benefit is to be invoked, the payer must make sure he has the necessary documents such as the non-residents audited accounts, tax filings, business registration records, etc. In normal circumstances, this is not easy to get from the non-resident, and consequently, it is safer for the payer to deduct the withholding tax where the non-resident is unable to provide the necessary documents to prove that he is bringing the income to tax as business income in his home country. Any gains and profits falling under Section 4(f) received by a non resident from a Labuan offshore company are tax exempt. This article is contributed by Thannees Tax Consulting Services Sdn Bhd managing director SM Thanneermalai (www.thannees.com).

country’s power grid infrastructure is highly developed and capable of supporting such growth. “Basically, when we have such an investment coming to our shores, yes, we are ready. We have the scalability, and we can do it,” he said at a recent press conference in conjunction with a preview of Engineer & Marvex 2025. Tan said that when Singapore decided to halt new data centre projects in 2016–2017, the investments were expected to migrate to Malaysia. However, the Covid-19 pandemic delayed the shift by two to three years, resulting in the current wave of projects, he said. “So, as I mentioned, we are not suddenly being dealt an unexpected card. This was already in the pipeline, and now the influx is here.” Tan is confident that Malaysia’s cooling industry currently has the capacity, resources and expertise to meet the existing demand for cooling technology for the data centres. “So yes, we can take the numbers. We are capable of meeting the demand,” he said, adding that the industry must be prepared for demand to grow proportionately in the coming years. “In the tech world, one year in real life is equivalent to just three or four months. This means we have to move faster and at a much speedier pace,” he said. From the air-conditioning perspective, he said Macra is looking at where it can secure sufficient power grid capacity and how it can sustain it. “Where are we going to get power grids? Where are we going to get the ability to sustain this?” He said Macra has been looking at technological improvements to make air conditioning systems use less energy while delivering the same or better cooling performance. “From those days until now, it has improved by 35%,”Tan said, adding that in the past, air-conditioners were massive, hardware-heavy facilities. “Now, they have become more compact, with a greater emphasis on software integration alongside hardware.” According to the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, Malaysia’s data centre sector attracted RM184.7 billion in related investments between 2021 and 2024, with facilities concentrated mainly in Johor and the Klang Valley. Data centre energy consumption in Malaysia is projected to exceed 5,000MW by 2035 equivalent to 40% of Peninsular Malaysia’s current power capacity, or 11.1% of the nation’s projected capacity in 2035. As of December 2024, actual load utilisation stood at 405MW (3% of Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s total supply), while the total maximum demand secured under electricity supply agreements reached 5.9GW (43% of TNB’s total supply), a figure analysts say is hazardously high. As of 2024, Johor and Klang Valley together accounted for 1.8GW of live and early-stage data centre capacity, split roughly 55% in Klang Valley and 45% in Johor.

Heineken Malaysia posts softer results, declares 40 sen dividend

harnessing data and driving innovation to secure long-term growth. “We will continue investing in our core brands, by driving inno vation and impactful activations that deepen connection with our consumers and lever aging digital capa bilities,” Martijn said. Despite the

earnings dip, the board declared a single-tier interim dividend of 40 sen per share for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2025. The dividend will be paid on Oct 30, with Oct 9 as the entitlement date. On outlook, Martijn said Heineken Malaysia remains vigilant of macroeconomic uncertainties but is banking on digitalisation and consumer insights to stay relevant. “Despite the ongoing macroeconomic challenges, we remain agile and forward-looking by harnessing the power of digital solutions and data-driven decision-making. This approach strengthens Heineken Malaysia’s long-term resilience to ensure we stay relevant to our customers and consumers in a dynamic market environment,” he said. The group continues to align its operations with its EverGreen strategy, which seeks balanced growth through topline expansion, profitability and capital efficiency while embed ding sustainability and responsibility into its business model. Martijn stressed that Heineken Malaysia will continue working closely with the authorities to combat illicit trade through collaboration and market education.