Raw cotton import duty hike riles Aptma

30 Jul '16

2 min read

Pakistan's textile industry is finding it difficult to operate in the country after the government increased the import duty on raw cotton, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) has said.

The Aptma's reaction came after government recently increased the duty on import of raw cotton from two per cent to three per cent with additional duty of one per cent, making total import duty of four per cent.

“It is not possible for the textile industry to continue to operate in these conditions and contribute to higher exports and provision of yarn to the domestic downstream, if they are made to pay such exorbitant amount of duty on its basic raw material,” Aptma chairman Tariq Saud said in a statement.

Saud said the duty hike has come at a time when the textile industry is reeling from the effects of a crop failure, as the production of cotton in the year 2015/16 declined by almost 35 per cent.

“Furthermore, cultivation of cotton this year is expected to decline by approximately 25 percent, which will ultimately create shortage of cotton to the spinning industry, compelling them to import the commodity at four per cent Customs duty,” according to the statement.

The Aptma has repeatedly pleaded with the government to totally remove import duty on cotton so that the textile industry can operate in an efficient manner, Saud said.

“But instead of accepting the reality, they have chosen to increase duty and further exacerbate the industry's plight,” he added.

“If we have to import over four million bales due to crop failures than import duty must be abolished,” Saud said. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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