Pakistan Tanners Association's (PTA) Chairman Fawad Jawed said here on Tuesday that a small support from the Ministry of Commerce could help boost leather products' export to $3 billion in the next three years, making the industry second biggest after textile. He said that contrary to the huge potential of leather products, exports of the leather industry had remained stagnant at $1.22 billion for the last six years.
He demanded of the government to impose a complete ban on the export of livestock. He also demanded of the government to include hides and skins in the 6th Schedule of Sales Tax Act 1990, besides reducing customs duty on basic leather chemicals. He was of the opinion that the leather sector could not benefit from the duty-free access to European Union market under GSP Plus unless the government restored zero-rated regime for export-oriented leather industry in the upcoming budget of 2014-15. He also demanded of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) rectify date of applicability of the SRO 897(I)/2013.
Urging immediate release of pending Sales Tax claims of the PTA's members, he said that a significant ratio of working capital of leather exporters was stuck-up in refund regime at a time when the leather export has already declined by over 17 per cent during the last six years from $1.22 billion in 2007-08 to $1.01 billion in 2012-13. The growth rate of leather sector exports was in minus and exports reduced to 14pc as against positive growth in the region with 47pc, 40pc and 102pc in China, India and Bangladesh, respectively, during the last fiscal year, he added.
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