TAHIR AMIN
ISLAMABAD: The Federal Textile Board (FTB) will meet Saturday to discuss Prime Minister’s Export Incentive Package with respect to enhancement of textile exports as well as the formulation of a long-term plan for the development of the sector.
Federal Minister for Commerce and Textile/Chairman FTB, Mohammad Pervaiz Malik will preside over the 7th meeting of the reconstituted board.
The body would take five items as per the agenda available with Business Recorder including; (i) implementation status of Prime Minister Package of Incentives, (ii) briefing on recent amendments by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet to facilitate the textile sector, (iii) recommendations by the associations to further improve the disbursement mechanism in duty drawbacks of taxes scheme under Prime Minister Package, (iv) suggestions by the associations to devise the medium for long-term plan, and (v) role of the associations/textile sector to enhance exports.
The Textile Division last month notified revised Prime Minister Package of incentives for exporters (textile sector) under which 50 percent of the rate of drawback of local taxes and levies shall be provided without condition of increment. Duty drawbacks under the revised package shall be allowed for exports goods declaration (GDs) filed on or after July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018 @ 7 percent for garments, 6 percent for made-ups, 5 percent for processed fabrics and 4 percent for grey fabric and yarn.
The duty drawbacks under this order shall be allowed for exports GDs filed on or after July 1, 2017 1 to June30, 2018 as; (a) 50 percent of the rate of drawback shall be provided without condition of increment; (b) remaining 50 percent of the rate of drawback shall be provided, if the exporter achieves an increase of 10 percent or more in exports during performance year (fiscal year 2017-18), as compared to the base year (fiscal year 2016-17); (c) the actual rate of drawback against (b) above shall be determined on the basis of annual performance of the exporter, but in order to improve her/his cash flow, the disbursement against (b) above shall be allowed on the performance during July-December, 2017, subject to submission of a bank guarantee that the exporter will return the excess amount, in case his/her annual exports are less than the amount of drawback paid to him/her.
An additional 2 percent drawback shall be allowed for exports to non-traditional markets, ie, Africa, Latin America, non-EU European countries, Commonwealth of Independent States and Oceania. The duty drawback shall be provided to manufacturing-cum exporting units on export of products under specific tariff codes of the Pakistan Customs Tariff.
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi after meeting with the exporters last month assigned a task to Federal Minister for Commerce and Textile Pervaiz Malik to come up with a long-term plan in 30 days in consultation with exporters to reduce the cost of doing business, encourage investors and make exports sectors competitive in the international market.
Sources revealed that the exporters have shown serious concern regarding the latest increase in electricity prices, saying it would further increase the cost of doing business of textile sector and may further hamper the production capacity of export-oriented sector. The body is likely to discuss the increase in electricity tariff and its repercussions for the sector.
