Clearance of pre-ban cargoes urged

KARACHI: Country’s top trade body on Friday appealed to the government to allow cargoes booked before the import ban to save importers from losses.

“It will be a huge set back for importers as they will not be able to recover their payments already made to their exporting partners for the 41 HS Code items in the banned list,” said Irfan Iqbal Sheikh, President Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) in a statement.

“As provided under proviso to Para-4 of the Import Policy Order (IPO) 2022, the imports for which the bill of landing or irrevocable Letter of Credit was issued preceding to the announcement of an amending order must be exempt from the ban.” Therefore, Sheikh said, it was an absolute imperative for the government to issue a clarification, in accordance with the law, to mitigate the panic that struck the market after the ban.