Textile exporters seek refund facility extension

Duty drawback scheme withdrawn in budget.

FAISALABAD:

Textile exporters have expressed concern that their exports will fall drastically if the duty drawback facility is not extended beyond June and pending claims are not cleared.

Talking to the media on Thursday, Pakistan Textile Exporters Association Chairman Wasim Latif and Vice-chairman Adil Manzoor Elahi said the rising cost of production was the core issue facing textile exporters in the prevailing difficult economic conditions and withdrawal of the tax refund facility would have negative consequences for exports.

In the five-year textile policy for 2009-14, the government had announced duty drawback scheme and provided other incentives as well which the textile producers say produced good results, leading to a substantial increase in exports of value-added textile products during the last two years.

They claimed that the government had assured that the facility would remain continue till the end of the textile policy, but it has not kept its promise in the budget.

In the face of fierce competition in the international market, Pakistani textiles were struggling to maintain their position because of the cash crunch, they said and pointed out that the textile ministry had demanded Rs40 billion in 2009-10 and Rs42 billion in 2010-11 for the textile industry, but the government released only Rs9.7 billion and Rs7.75 billion for refunds.

In the last fiscal year, they said, textile exports crossed $10 billion and could achieve far better results if conditions remained conducive.







Published in The Express Tribune, June 10th, 2011.