The federal government is likely to slap 15 percent Regulatory Duty (RD) on sugar export, being transported mainly to Afghanistan through legal channels, sources told Business Recorder here on Monday.
"We have recommended to the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet to immediately impose 15 percent RD on sugar export to discourage exports to Afghanistan," official sources said. The ECC in its meeting on May 22 will consider the proposal, submitted by the Central Board of Revenue (CBR).
Sources said that about 5200 tons is sugar exported to Afghanistan per month and the total commodity exported to Kabul during last five months amounted to 26,000 tons.
They said that the government was spending foreign exchange on import of refined and raw sugar at zero duty from different countries including India to meet domestic requirements, while the exporters were exporting the imported and locally processed sugar to Afghanistan, which is not only creating shortage in local market but the benefit of duty-free sugar import was being transferred to the people of another country.
The whole 'sugar scenario' has been discussed at different government forums and reviewed by the President and the Prime Minister, and the prices review committee headed by Dr Sulman Shah, sources added. They said that the gist of all meetings was that the government should not only improve the supply but should also levy 15 percent RD on export of sugar to make Afghan market less attractive for the exporters.
Sugar crisis would also come under discussion when the ECC would review Sensitive Price Indicators (SPI) and prices of sensitive items for the week ending May 18, sources said.
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