Plan to cut sales tax on cotton lauded

KARACHI: Syed Mazhar Ali Nasir, senior vice president, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) lauded government proposal to withdraw five percent sales tax on the import of cotton, and termed it in line with the demand of the textile sector.

He said the depressed textile sector has heaved a sigh of relief, as almost 140 textile mills closed their operations due to the high cost of doing business and inadequate supply of raw cotton. This, he said resulted in a loss of one million jobs.

Further around 75 to 80 mills were on the verge of closure which would add another 0.5 million to the unemployment figure, Nasir said. “Due to the closure of about 140 mills and the mills operating under capacity, Pakistan's textile exports are suffering a loss of more than $4 billion per annum, which may have been a vital contribution in addressing the problem of the high trade deficit,” the FPCCI official added.

Cotton crop of the country was far behind the consumption requirement of 15 million bales, for the third consecutive year, as a result, the industry was compelled to import cotton from other countries to meet its annual consumption requirement.