The country’s leading apparel makers have welcomed the decision of the government on lowering the source tax on exports to 0.60 percent from the earlier proposed 1 percent. President of Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB) Abdus Salam Murshedy told daily sun that lowering source tax on exports will help strengthen the private sector’s capacity. Murshedy also observed that the reduced rate of 10 percent duty on RMG sector should be extended by 5 years till June 30th 2019 and providing special stimulus for all the Eurozone exporters for saving them from the impact of abnormal devaluation of Euro price. “Otherwise, the export sector, the main driving force of the economy will lose competitiveness in the world market and buyers will opt for buying from other neighbouring countries. This will result in closure of many factories and the overall export growth will come down drastically”, Murshedy added. He thanked Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Finance Minister AMA Muhith for lowering source tax. Vice President of the Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Shahidullah Azim Tuesday told daily sun that the government’s move is certainly welcoming and there was no alternative to doing this for the survival of the RMG sector. Vice President of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Md. Hatem told that lowering source tax was a demand of time considering the hurdles that the sector faces like infrastructure, high bank rate, political instability. Md Hatem said more than 80 percent of export earning comes from the RMG sector, and so naturally this sector should be considered above all. Meanwhile, the parliament on Monday passed the Finance Bill (2015-16) after reducing source tax on exports to 0.60 percent.
