Car import falls 83 percent to $14.7mln in first quarter

KARACHI: Import of used cars witnessed a sharp decline of 83 percent, in terms of value, during the first quarter of the current fiscal year following strict measures introduced by the government to check growing imports.

Import of used cars in completely built unit (CBU) condition slid to $14.69 million during July-September 2019/20 compared with $87.21 million in the corresponding period of the last year, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics’ (PBS) latest data showed.

Commercial import of used or old cars is not allowed in the country under a law. The government allows overseas Pakistanis to bring cars into the country.

Pakistani nationals residing abroad, including dual nationals, can import old and used vehicles into Pakistan under personal baggage, gift and transfer of residence schemes. Cars not older than three years and other vehicles not older than five years can be imported under the schemes. In the past, these schemes were grossly misused and bulk of imported cars was brought into the country.

In February, the ministry of commerce amended Import Policy Order 2016 and made it mandatory for clearance of cars through foreign exchange, which should be certified by banks.

Since then the clearance of the cars has come to a standstill. Customs authorities said a large number of imported cars are stuck at the port, but importers failed to make payment as per procedure prescribed by the ministry of commerce.

The import of cars started declining in the last fiscal year. Import of CBU fell 51.33 percent to $222 million in the fiscal year of 2018/19.

In July-September, import of heavy vehicles, including buses and trucks, declined 75 percent, while import of CBU motorcycles fell 73 percent.

On the other hand, import of cars in completely knocked down (CKD) condition also fell 19 percent to $175.14 million during the July-September 2019. CKD imports amounted to $217 million in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year. Overall import of vehicles in CKD dropped 27 percent to $261 million during the first quarter of 2019/20. The figure was recorded at $359 million in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year.

Market sources said massive depreciation in rupee value during the past couple of years increased the cost of local car manufacturers.

Further, the rates of locally-assembled cars for end consumers sharply increased during the period. These factors have reduced the productions of locally-manufactured cars and subsequently slashed the import of cars in CKD condition.

Sales of locally-manufactured cars fell 39 percent in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, according to the data recently released by Pakistan Auto Manufacturers Association.