Fix the economy or we are shutting shop, say traders

Trade associations of the city protest against federal budget, economic policies for 2019-20

KARACHI: Small traders in Karachi have rejected the federal budget for the fiscal year 2019-20 and have announced to begin protests from today (Tuesday). The traders claim that the wrong economic decisions taken by the incumbent government are taking a toll on the people and on businessmen. Various trader associations from Karachi have come together in protest. They have announced a protest march from Regal Chowk in Saddar to the Karachi Press Club today (Tuesday).

Karachi Traders Action Committee held a meeting on Monday and supported the decision to begin protests on Tuesday against the economic policies and the budget presented by the federal government.

This protest march will be the first demonstration of Karachi's traders against the incumbent government since it took office. It is expected that the protest may eventually transform into a full-fledged campaign against the government. Representatives of various trader associations attended the meeting and resolved that if the authorities don't respond to their demonstration, the market will resort to a shutter-down strike to record its protest.

Numerous grievances

The traders opine that the government's economic policies have crippled businesses. Markets remain deserted while shopkeepers helplessly await improvement.

The traders point out that there has been a continuous decline in the value of the rupee causing prices of imported goods to reach sky-high levels. Essential items such as sugar, cooking oil, spices, tea and powdered milk are increasingly becoming costlier.

According to Wholesale Grocers Association Chairperson Anis Majeed, the rupee's depreciation has caused prices of various essential commodities to increase by 25 per cent. However, he added, the complete impact of the rupee's devaluation is yet to be felt.

Traders shut down Saddar markets to protest heavy taxes

"Prices are expected to rise further as new consignments of imported items reach the country," he said.

Further worsening the situation, the government has also abruptly made the tax mechanism more complex in a bid to implement its impractical reforms, opined Majeed. "In addition to the sales tax on sugar, the government has also imposed a withholding tax and turnover tax on the price of sugar while all other food grains have also been double-taxed [manufacturers pay the tax, and then distributors and wholesalers also pay taxes]," he said.

Along with a manufacturer tax and an import tax, the government has also levied taxes on distributers, wholesalers and retailers, remarked Majeed.

 

He claimed that ultimately it would be the consumers who would bear the brunt of these taxes while adding that implementation of such tax policies would be difficult to say the least.

Meanwhile, Karachi Electronic Dealers Association (KEDA) President Rizwan Irfan said that the steps taken by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) have rendered mobile phones worth millions useless. The buying and selling of mobile phones has taken a hit as the PTA has imposed a mandatory condition of showing the CNIC when buying mobile phones be it at the distributer, wholesale or retail level.

"We were already facing a decline in sales due to the devaluation of the rupee and the increase in electricity tariffs but now, the measures taken under the guise of tax reforms have made conducting business even more difficult," he said, adding that given the market situation, the traders of the electronic market will participate in the protest march.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2019.