RECORDER REPORT

FAISALABAD: Chairman All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA), Sheikh Muhammad Ayub, felicitated government for presenting a progressive, balanced, business-friendly, investment-friendly and people-friendly budget for the year 2014-15, despite enormous odds and resource constraint, which is a healthy augury for Pakistan; but we still need to do a lot more for keeping abreast with the massive challenges of Energy Crisis faced by the industry for the last several years.

He appreciated the decision of duty draw back regime for textile exporters on exports of processed fabrics, made-ups and garments products at the rate of one percent, two percent and four percent, respectively, at FoB value on additional incremental export basis on increase of more than 10% export from the preceding year, reduction of mark-up rate by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) from 9.4% to 7.5% for the textile exporters on export refinancing scheme and two years’ extension of duty-free regime for import of textile machinery.

APTPMA Chief lauded the decision of expeditious payments of all pending sales tax valid refund claims of textile exporters till 30th September 2014 and issuance of instructions to FBR for payments/settlements of all next/new valid sales tax refund claims of textile exporters within three months.

Chairman APTPMA, further said in view of energy crisis faced by the value-added textile processing industry for the last several years, textile industrialists were expecting special relief package for the value-added industry in the new budget, e.g. soft loans, exemption from all taxes till uninterrupted supply of gas and electricity to our industry but proposed gradual withdrawal of concessionary regime in next three years has created panic among the masses. Textile industry is already striving for its survival due to energy crisis faced for the last several years should be given some special relief packages.

However, appreciating the decision of allocation of Rs205 billions in the budget to power projects to reduce the energy crisis, Chairman APTPMA said this is right step in the right direction; however, still a lot has to be done through long-range planning in order to combat the increasing gap of demand and supply during every year, i.e. expeditious completion of ongoing projects of electricity/power generation and exploration of gas wells on war footing.