Four major textile exporters from Faisalabad are not participating in prominent Textile Fair - Heimtextil in Germany, to be held in January 2007, and many others have reduced their stall size in view of continuous decline in the textile exports and uncompetitive prices of Pakistani products.
Rana Arif Tauseef, prominent industrialist, exporter and ex-chairman, Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) disclosed this in a talk here on Monday.
He further said that the stalls vacated by Pakistani exporters were being taken by Indian exporters and it would be the first time that cheaper Indian exports would be contesting the costly Pakistani products side by side.
He expressed apprehensions that this would render a severe setback to Pakistani exports and the country would lose its traditional export market. He said that the textile exports in the country were continuously declining since the July 2005.
The declining trend has overflowed in current fiscal as the textile exports from July-October, 2006 period are $3.2 billions against the same period July-October, 2005 exports $3.5 billions reflecting a decline of 9.11 percent. Rana Tauseef warned that if immediate remedial measures were not taken the textile exports of Pakistan would face a total disaster.
The Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) ex-chairman demanded that instead of providing subsidy or concessions to exporters the government should concentrate on reducing the cost of doing business in the country by abolishing unnecessary levies on the exports such as the cost of gas, withholding tax, provincial and local taxes. He said that if the exports were immediately zero-rated the declining trend in export could be stemmed.