Country’s Cement Industry is currently facing hard mainly due to taxation and other reasons like fuel shortage, high transportation costs, dollar crisis and an increasing currency value.
In a post budget press conference, cement sector insiders on Monday said imposing additional import duty (Customs Duty-CD) on 'Clinker', the main raw material of cement which announced in Fiscal year 2023-2024 budget; Additional Income Tax (AIT), un-adjustable AIT, a fuel shortage, high transportation costs, dollar crisis and an increasing currency value etc have led the sector in severe crises.
President of Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA) and Vice-Chairman of Crown Cement Md. Alamgir Kabir red out a written handout in the press conference, held at a city hotel.
The BCMA leaders had long been demanding that the Customs Duty on 'Clinker', the main raw material of the Cement Industry, should be reduced from Tk 500 per metric tonne to Tk 200 per metric tonne.
“But in the current budget, instead of reducing CD, it has been increased from Tk 500 to Tk 700 per metric tonne (CD), as a result of which the Cement Manufacturers are very disappointed. Customs Duty on key raw materials of an industry is usually around 5 percent of the import value”, BCMA President said.
But the Customs Duty on ‘Clinker’ stands at around 12%-13% of the import value because of the recent budget announcement on 'Clinker' levying a customs duty of Tk 700 per metric tonne, he added.
Thus 12%-13% customs duty on the import value of key raw materials is considered disproportionate to the Cement Industry Owners and its detrimental effect may put additional pressure on the consumer-general in the cement market and may lead to a slowdown in overall construction activity. Alamgir Kabir pointed out, “We have been demanding for a long time that at the import stage, primarily AIT can be levied at a maximum of 0.50%, but it would not be appropriate to consider it as a final settlement. Therefore, we have been applying to open up the opportunity to adjust the AIT.”
“Besides import stage, AIT has been levied as 2 percent in sales stage, it is being considered as final settlement. Cement manufacturers have been demanding for a long time that a maximum of 0.50% may be levied at the primary level of sale stage, but it would not be appropriate to consider it as final settlement. Therefore, in this case too, we are requesting to have the opportunity to adjust AIT. ” said Kabir.
He also mentioned that in the pre-budget discussion held on February 16, 2023, a request was made to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to consider the matter and the authority verbally assured to reconsider this issue of AIT. But unfortunately we have seen no reflection from the assurance of NBR in the budget of financial year 2023-2024.
