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pAKIStAN’S fIRSt INDeptH NewSpApeR oN cuStomS

Daily

Vol 1 Issue No. 300

Karachi, Wed February 24, 2016

PESHAWAR

NADIR KHAN

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o curb the menace of smuggling, Customs Collectorate Peshawar, in collaboration with Customs Intelligence and Investigation, has started a grand blockade and surveillance operation of main arteries of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as well as through Pak-Afghan Transit route.

Sources said that following the directives of Director General Customs Intelligence Imtiaz Ahmad, the Collector Peshawar Qurban Ali Khan was

Price Rs. 14.00

heading the operation. The focal persons of the operation are Ziaullah Shams Additional Director and Fazle-Samad an Additional Collector.

Khayal Muhammad Deputy Director and Ali Asad Assistant Collector are head of the operation. In this connection, a Olag march with a number of vehicles of the Customs ofOicials and personnel of securities agencies passed through the different main routes of the Peshawar. The routes supposed to put of strict surveillance and under blockade to check the smuggling were including Ring Road, Motorway MI heading to Islamabad, Jamrud Road, Grand Trunk Road, Charsadda Road and other allied main roads. Customs teams from different cities are also participating in the operation, additional force to reinforce the operation is also called on.

Collector Ahmad Reza directs staff to use all resources to curb smuggling

Lifting of sanctions on Iranian banking sector to boost trade activities

Int’l conference on halal foods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics kicks off

Strong tax base necessary for sound economy: Rehmatullah

Police should perform their duties honestly: SCCI

Collector Ahmad Reza has said that the Customs Department is working with full | See pAge 02 |

Khurram Dastigir has said that the economy of Pakistan is on sound track | See pAge 03 |

Rana Tanveer Hussain inaugurated an international conference on halal foods | See pAge 04 |

Rehmat Ullah Wazir has assured the tax payers and businessmen that no old tax | See pAge 12 |

A meeting of SCCI held under the auspicious of President Major (R) Mansoor | See pAge 09 |

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Islamabad High Court will hear three tax cases Wednesday, February 24, 2016

National

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court will hear three tax matters on Tuesday (today) carrying the Customs Appellate Tribunal and Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR) as party. A division bench of the IHC comprising Justice Noorul Haq N Qureshi and Justice Athar Minallah will hear the cases. Among these cases, M/s United Express and M/s Amson Vaccine had filed customs tax matters in which it had made party to the Customs Appellate Tribunal, Islamabad and officers of the Large Taxpayer’s Unit Regional Tax Office. In another sales tax matter, M/s Pak Telecom Mobile Limited had complained against Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue and officers of large taxpayer’s unit.

collector Ahmad Reza directs staff to use all resources to curb smuggling

Zero regulatory duty on steel scrap demanded LAHORE

m HAYAt

SIALKOT

SAleem AwAN SHeIKHu

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ollector Customs Ahmad Reza has said that the Customs Department is working with full swing and all ofOicers and subordinate staff are performing duty honestly at Sialkot Dry Port Trust (SDPT) and Sialkot International Airport Limited (SIAL) whereas all ofOicers and staff is completing their responsibilities under law. Talking to Customs Today, he said that the government has instructed the customs ofOicers and subordinate staff to curb smuggling from the country and the Customs Department has launched a campaign against smuggling.

He said the ofOicial three wings of customs department Customs Intelligence Anti Smuggling Organisation (ASO) and FIU are performing their duty to curb smuggling. He said Chairman Federal Board of Revenue Nisar Muhammad has issued orders that customs ofOicers must use all resources to control smuggling. He said we have credible information that various shopkeepers are selling smuggled items on behalf of Afghan Transit Trade but department is taking action against these shopkeepers and said customs are watching shopkeepers, plazas and markets. He said if any shopkeeper will found guilty then de-

he Pakistan Steel Melters Association (PSMA) has urged the government to abolish five percent regulatory duty on shredded steel scrap and also bring down the ratio of sales tax on electricity for the steel melting industry to Rs 4 from Rs 9 per unit.

PSMA Chairman Mian Muhammad Saeed along with executive committee members including Mian Azizur Rehman Chan made these demands in a press conference.

Mian Saeed also demanded the government abolish adjustable sales tax at the import stage, as it blocks the working capital of steel melters to run their daily trade and manufacturing affairs.

To a question, he elaborated that in 2007, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) after taking board all stakeholders (steel melters, steel re-rollers, ship breakers and Pakistan Steel Mills) had given a formula named as Special Procedure 2007. Under the Special Procedure, he added, the sales tax ratio on per unit electricity for melting industry was Rs 4 75 but this ratio had been increased up to Rs 9 in the current budget 2015-16.

partment will conOiscate all items while seal his shop and register a case against him as per law.

He said the department has starting checking of transport on roads which come from KPK, Rawalpindi, Balochistan and Karachi. He said department is also checking documents of imported vehicles and if

any vehicle will be found without payment of custom duty then this vehicle will be impounded. He said customs department has decided that all ofOicers and subordinates will work for betterment of country and department.

He said Sialkot is export oriented city whereas the exporters of Sialkot

are very hard worker and they have good knowledge about export. He said export is increasing day by day from Sialkot and the export from Sialkot is backbone for development of country while the government is also providing facilities to exporters of Sialkot and exporters are getting beneOits through government.

B’desh wants to enhance trade ties with pak: monoj Kumar A

ISLAMABAD

m fAIZAN

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dditional Secretary Ministry of Commerce Bangladesh Monoj Kumar Roy has expressed dissatisfaction on trade between D-8 countries. An Interview with Customs Today, he said that his country is not satisOied with the present volume of trade between D-8 countries.

It is very low. All the members of D8 countries are from Muslim

Ummah. “We have a common religion and also common culture, and we know each other and need to increase trade,” he said.

He said that D-8 is the best forum to increase mutual trade. We are also taking necessary steps towards achieving the objectives and goals of D-8 cooperation as stated in the road-map to increase intra-trade of D-8 states to at least 15 to 20 percent of their global trade by the end of 2018. He said there is a huge growth potential both in trade and

foreign direct investment (FDI) Olows amongst the developing countries and believing that the D-8 member states can play a leading role progress of economy He said the D-8 countries are agreed to expend revised offer list so that private sector Oinds incentive in trading and encourage remaining member states to ratify the D-8 preferential trade agreement as soon as possible.

He said in the next March I think this preferential trade agreement

will going to be the implemented, and if all the members countries participated in this everyone of them may have be the win win situation. These concessions will boost to the trade amongst the D-8 countries. He said that at present trade situation between Pakistan and Bangladesh is very good. The volume of trade between two countries is very high and increasing day by day. We are considering to sit and finds the way outs that boost our trade between both

countries. He said that the volume of trade between Pakistan and Bangladesh is not very much higher and the balance tilts in favour of Pakistan. Major Bangladeshi products that enter the Pakistani market include raw jute, jute goods, tea, leather, agriproducts and chemical items.

Bangladesh imports textile and textile products, beverages, tobacco, vegetable products, fruits, processed food and a motley of light engineering products.

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FBR to take stern action against smugglers KARACHI: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has taken field formation collectorate and customs intelligence on board to curb smuggling of various contraband items causing billion of rupees loss to national exchequer.

According to the sources, borders areas adjacent to Afghanistan cars, cloths, tea, tyres and chemicals including other items are being smuggled into the Pakistani cities.

FBR and Customs Intelligence and Investigation planned to start joint operations against various contraband items and non duty paid vehicles across the country as well as the culprits involved in it.

customs Appellate tribunal Bench-I will hear seven tax references

Wednesday February 24, 2016

National

lifting of sanctions on Iranian banking sector to boost trade activities: Khurram

ISLAMABAD

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he Customs Appellate Tribunal Bench-II will hear seven tax references on Tuesday (today) filed against Collectorate of Customs.

Out of seven, six tax references were filed against Customs Peshawar by M/s Hattar Electronics, Haripur. One was filed by M/s Madni Poly Tex. Customs Appellate Tribunal Bench-II Member Technical Muhammad Maqsoodul Hassan would hear the references. M/s Hattar Electronics, Haripur had filed references challenging decision of Customs Collector, Peshawar and sought relief from the tribunal.

These references were filed in 2008, under numbers: 181186/CU/IB/2008.

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fBR decides to ‘blacklist’ sales tax defaulters KARACHI

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he Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has warned that all those who fail to submit their sales tax returns in fiscal year 201415 will be ‘blacklisted’. Sources informed Customs Today that the FBR sent them many notices, advising them to clear their outstanding sales tax arrears but a lot of persons are not taking these notices seriously and willfully avoiding to pay sales tax. Now the FBR has decided to ‘blacklist’ all those defaulters and put a ban on their trade activities.

The FBR authorities are preparing final lists in this regard. A crackdown will be started against all such people soon.

The FBR authorities are preparing final lists in this regard.

A crackdown will be started against all such people soon.

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ISLAMABAD

m fAIZAN

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ederal Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastigir Khan has said that the economy of Pakistan is on sound track and there is no need to depend on other countries for achievement of the economic targets.

He was talking to Customs Today during an exclusive interview. Dastigir lauded lifting of sanction on Iran and said that “we are waiting for lifting of sanction on Iranian banking sector.” He said that a high-level delegation of the State Bank is going to Iran during the next week while other high ranking ofOicials of both countries will also pay visit to each others’ countries.

Answering a question about PTA between D-8 countries, Dastigir said that Muslim countries have lot of skilled labour and there is no need to consult western countries in this regard. He said that the volume of trade between D-8 countries is very low and the PTA among D-8 countries is a big achievement.

The minister said that six countries of D-8 nations will start implementation on the PTA from July 1, 2016. He said that increasing of trade activities leads to investment. He said that Islamic countries failed to build a strong partnership among them in terms of trade and investment.

Khurram Dastigir said that now

the economy of Islamic countries are producing positive results and due to this factor Islamic countries can easily generate employment opportunities for their manpower in their own countries. He said that Pakistan should establish trade ties with every country and this move will provide lot of benefits to Pakistani nation. He said our exporters focus is limited. He said when investors of western countries will know that Pakistan inked PTA with

Dastigir said that now the economy of Islamic countries are producing positive results and due to this factor Islamic countries can easily generate employment opportunities for their manpower in their own countries. He said that pakistan should establish trade ties with every country and this move will provide lot of benefits to pakistani nation

New pak-Afghan customs complex in the offing KARACHI

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S R KHAN

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joint venture of Pakistan and Afghanistan governments, in connection with the construction of a modern customs complex, is in the ofOing, it is learnt here.

The sources informed Customs Today that the Customs authorities of both the countries have begun this project on the border which will

signiOicantly increase the capacity of the Pakistan Customs. The sources further informed Customs Today that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide a fund of $300 million in order to construct the said Customs Complex adding that the complex will be located on an area of 40 hectares, and it will also include customs and immigration body. The facility of Modern Customs Complex at the border of Pak-Afghan Border would be equipped with a computerised sys-

tem, scanners for pedestrians and cars and it will also speed up the process of customs clearance at Torkhum-Chaman Border. The sources further disclosed that the authorities of both the neighboring countries have taken the said step keeping the issues and problems of Afghan entrepreneurs in front. It is pertinent to mention here that the complaints related to the intentional delay of goods from Afghanistan to Pakistan have been reported regularly at the Customs.

their country that will increase their cofidence on Pakistani economy and our traders will access their market directly but we have to follow their rules but their rules are very strict.

Answering a question he said that we are hoping that restrictions will be lifted on Iranian banking sector in June or July, we are preparing ourselves to enhance trade activities with Iran after lifting of International sanctions.

pRA seals 15 hotels over sales tax issues he Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) has sealed 15 hotels, including Palace Inn and Zimindar Hotel for non-registration of sales tax.

The PRA has also seized hotels including Palace Inn Hotel on Fane Road, Zimindar Hotel on McLeod Road, Mian Hotel on Ravi Road and al Mumtaz Hotel for non payment of tax for the year 2012.

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Cement sale increases by 15.57%, export declines by 25% Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Business

LAHORE: The cement’s domestic sales increased in double digits during the last four months, however, the exports continued to decline.

According to the data released by All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association, the local despatches increased to 17.9 million tons from July 15 to Jan 16 against 15.5 million tons during same period of last fiscal indicating an increase of 15.57%.

However, exports declined to 3.4 million tons from July 15 to Jan 16 against 4.5 million tons from July 14 to Jan 15 ie by 24.98%. In exports, the North based mills registered decline of 22.35 percent as exports were restricted to 2.16 million.

pSX observes another volatile session to close in red zone

pak post being made profitable thru public-private partnership

KARACHI

ISLAMABAD

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he Karachi Stock Exchange benchmark 100-index lost 23.71 points or 0.08 percent to reach 30653.97 points and volume of 111,418,520 shares on Tuesday. On Tuesday, until mid day, KSE-100 Index was at 30690.17 with a positive change of 12.49 and volume of 33,178,100 shares.

On Monday, PSX resumed its

Int’l moot on halal food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics kicks off

downward trend as the index fell well below the barrier of 31,000.

The bourse was down contrary to trend in regional markets where the Chinese Market closed up 2.20%. Global prices of crude oil were also on the raise with Brent Crude inched up above $34.

Year-to-date, foreigners have been net sellers of US$82mn, a significant number in a span of two months, observed Muhammad Rizwan Head of Sales Topline Securities. High and low were 30841.73 and 30275.61 respectively. Total volume traded in the market was 111,418,520 shares.

Investors were surprised by the

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ederal Minister for Science and Technology Rana Tanveer inaugurated an international conference on halal foods, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, jointly organised by PCSIR and IFANCA. While talking to media after inaugural ceremony, the minister said that the NAB needed to improve its performance as well as procedure to move forward in the right direction.

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rime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, chairing meeting of Cabinet Committee on Energy, Monday directed timely completion of different ongoing power projects across the country and said he would personally monitor the progress to ensure it.

The prime minister said signiOicant addition of power to the national grid would minimise load-

he government is making Pakistan Post a profit-oriented organisation through reformed agenda and public-private partnership. They are endeavouring to run the organisation on modern grounds providing fastest services at minimum rates at far flung areas of country and abroad, said an official of Pak Post. At the first step, the post office of G-8 Markaz has been set up as a model post office and soon other post offices would be modernized on the same style, he told APP. The organisation is focusing on three major points of action which are launch of mobile money transfer, launch of logistic company and rebranding of Pakistan Post, he apprised. With rise of private courier companies and their synergy with the burgeoning e-commerce industry, it has become an increasingly tough market for postal services. In addition, smartphones, apps, emails and mobile financial services have also grabbed attention of customers at a large scale. The first point was Mobile Money Solution, he said adding, for which a significant investment has been proposed for existing 3,200 post offices and roughly 9,000 agents.

T PSX bearish performance on Monday for it was quite in contrast

with the major regional markets, most of which closed in the green.

9,090mw by 2017: Nawaz for timely completion of power projects

LAHORE

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shedding. He said increased power generation would also contribute to economic growth through increased industrial activity. Federal Secretary Water and Power briefed the meeting that the year 2015 remained most stable as well as the best period for generation of power during the last ten years due to lowest line losses in terms of technicalities and recovery. There was 5.8% reduction in the line losses during the year due to better monitoring and robust strategy to eliminate corruption and leakages, the Secretary told the meeting. The prime minister was in-

formed that there was an increase of Rs 51 billion in recoveries while Rs 10 billion were saved due to decrease in line losses. Secretary Water and Power said due to better generation cost and monitoring Rs 57 billion were saved. The meeting was informed that fuel stocks in the country were in excellent shape; peak generation of power was 17,000MW last year as a result of better efOiciency and management.

He said year 2015 was the only year that witnessed the start of facilitation to new IPPs that would generate 12,000MW of electricity.

Secp registers pakistan Airways as subsidiary of pIA ISLAMABAD

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he Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has registered Pakistan Airways as subsidiary of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The subsidiary was registered with the aim to improve the service standards of the national-Olag carrier.

“Reference media queries, please

note that Pakistan Airways has been registered as a premium service subsidiary of PIA,” spokesperson Danyal Gillani said in a statement. “This would help improve the service standard and image of the national airline,” the spokesperson added.

The national Olag carrier had earlier been transformed into a limited company instead of a corporation.

Meanwhile, The auto sale of manufactured and assembled in Pakistan has surged to 179,953 units in

2015 from 136,888 units in 2014, Khaleej Times quoting the sources of the Ministry of Industries.

The country’s auto industry is enjoying a boom as all leading automobile brands such as Suzuki, Toyota and Honda have reported high proOits. According to Khaleej Times, Pakistani automobile buyers are enjoying higher purchasing power as the biggest car producer Suzuki Motors shot down the industry’s production record growth of 31 per

cent by upping its own output by 54 per cent in 2015.

“The latest growth in the automobile sector conOirms a rising per capita income in Pakistan, improved economics of the auto sector and overall recovery of the economy,” said Tahir Saeed, a Oinancial market researcher. There is big scope of more investment inOlows to expand production capacity as competition among car manufacturers increases.

Auto industry is doing so well at this

time in the country. “The auto industry must now focus on enlarging output of its cars and export more units to countries in its neighbourhood. It should also tap new markets in Central Asia,” Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir said. Suzuki has unveiled its operational and Oinancial results for 2015.

The company is jointly owned by Pakistan Automobile Corporation (Paco) and Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan (SMC).

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hare of voluntary payments in the total direct tax collection reflect that efforts made by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to persuade taxpayers for filing their returns and steps taken for broadening tax base have started to produce results.

Sources at the FBR, sharing data of revenue collection along with increasing trend with Customs Today, said that voluntary payments recorded a growth of around 10 percent and stood at Rs 288 billion as compared with Rs 263 billion last year.

Main contribution in the voluntary payments was in advance tax, which grew by 8% and recorded at Rs270 billion in previous Oiscal year.

However, the share of voluntary payments represented 26% of the total direct tax collection in last Oinancial year compared with its share of 28% in 2013-14. Payment with returns also grew by 30% in last Oiscal year.

The source shared that an analysis of the last two decades of Oiscal performance revealed that

high subsidies remained a major burden on Oiscal account combined with falling tax to GDP ratio. Interestingly, even during the period of Oiscal improvement (1999- 2004), tax to GDP ratio continued to decline.

Tax revenue as percentage of GDP stood at an average of 13.7% during 1992-96, decreased to an average of 9.7 % during 2008-2013. Low tax to GDP ratio has also translated into falling total revenue to GDP ratio as it decreased from an average of 18% during 1992-96 to 13.4% during 2008-13.

However, the source said that the Oiscal performance improved considerably during last two years, both in terms of revenue mobilization and expenditure management. Going forward, both spending and revenue measures have important implications for the economy and these need to be taken into account if the ongoing Oiscal consolidation efforts are to be sustainable.

The tax collection target of Rs2,810 billion set for last Oiscal year was challenging due to multifaceted issues like energy crisis and law and order situation� the source added saying that target was set assuming FBR revenue collection at Rs2,275 billion during

2013-14 which was based on projected growth in GDP, inOlation, tax buoyancy and other major economic indicators. However, the source added that tax collection fell short by Rs21 billion against the budget target and stood at Rs2,254 billion in 2013-14, resulting in a revised target of Rs2,605 billion for 2014-15. Therefore, FBR tax to GDP ratio improved to 9.5% in 2014-15 from 8.9% last year owing to improved tax collection.

st the la f o s i s naly nce y an a forma a r s e s p e l c s fisca Sour des of igh subsidie l a c e d two that h den on fisca d e l a e ur rev tax ajor b m a falling d h e t n i i a w ven rem ned combi ngly, e i t t n s e u r o e acc Int al ratio. of fisc d o i r e to gDp x to the p 04), ta 0 2 during 9 line t (199 to dec emen v d o e r u p n ti im tio con gDp ra

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Founder & Chairman Zulfiqar Ali Editor Rahil Yasin editor@customsbulletin.com.pk For advertising & subscription marketing@customsbulletin.com.pk www.customsbulletin.com Phones: 042-35781643-4, Fax: 042-35781645 Address: 627, Siddiq Trade Centre, Gulberg, Lahore

eDItoRIAl

challenges to national economy

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inance Minister Ishaq Dar has depicted a rosy picture of the economy and expressed the government’s resolve to confront the challenges facing the nation. He claims that 22 world financial institutions have projected the country’s economy as stable and the government has brought down the budget deficit from 8.8 percent to 4.3 percent of the gross domestic product. However, many economic variables belie his claim as Pakistan’s exports have been declining for the last couple of years. Though the economists hold global economic slowdown, high cost of production, energy crisis and inefficiencies of the private sector responsible for the situation, the country has failed to tap its potentials of growth on many occasions. Until now the government has failed to achieve any of the economic targets other than adding the burden of loans on the national economy and the situation has reached a breaking point. A recent media report suggests that Pakistan has to spend 42 percent of its budget on debt servicing, but the minister is still dodging himself or the nation that the economy is vibrant by all aspects. There are no two opinions on the notion that Pakistan has great potential to progress and has a bright future, but actions speak louder than words. Only a lip-service will not bring any change in the economy or in the lives of the people. He claims that the tax growth rate has increased to 33 percent in two years from 3 percent in the past and foreign exchange reserves have crossed $20 billion.

However, what will be the after effects of the rigorous drive against the business community is such a factor which has always been ignored by the government. He says that the government wants to increase the GDP growth rate up to 15 percent, but failed to explain how it will happen. The government has obtained foreign loans amounting to $45.94 billion from 2000 to 2013 and it is still piling up. The government has recently introduced a tax amnesty scheme which is a right step in the right direction. However, it should also invite the foreign investors to set up industries along the economic corridor to achieve real GDP growth. ‘Make in Pakistan’ is a good idea and Pakistan can become an attractive destination for the investors if government gives tax relief and provides modern infrastructure to the foreign entrepreneurs.

pm’s initiatives to increase exports A

LAHORE

DR AftAB AfZAl

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ccording to newspaper reports, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has declared zero-rated tax regime for the export sector from July 1 to help overcome liquidity crunch and bring transparency to the payment procedure of refund claims.

The Federal Board of Revenue currently charges tax on raw material whether it is imported or local made. However, once it is established that the product made of the raw material has been exported, the tax amount is refunded. A delegation of businessmen met the prime minister and demanded zero-rating regime as

the board had introduced the similar policy Oive years ago for textile, sports, leather,carpet and surgical sectors. The board later withdrew the concession on the ground that some manufacturers were involved in selling products in the domestic market. Exporters regret that Rs 200 million are still lying with the department and a procedure should have to be evolved for disbursement of the claims. The total impact of zerorating will be up to Rs 10 billion.

Unfortunately, the export sector of the country has been showing bleak performance for the last six months and exports fell in double digits during period. Reportedly some exportersin textile sector are opting for selling their products in the local market

which not only affected the volume of exports, but also the government revenues in terms of concessions availed on the raw material. However, the issue of refund claims needs to be resolved through mutual understanding of the government and the business community. Experts believe that the clearance of Rs200 billion will also help reduce the share of taxes to provinces under the divisible pool. Meanwhile, Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir has claimed that the country’s exportshave crossed $25billionmark for the Oirst time in the economic history of Pakistan.

According to him, the decline in exports during 2014-15was due to decline in the global prices ofcotton, leather products and bas-

mati rice.

He says that the government has banned the export of livestock and has earned $210.5 million through export of meat. The government should note that the nation has the right to purchase edibles of their choice in the country.

One fails to understand why the best quality fruit, vegetable, rice and other commodities are allowed to be sold at cheap prices in distant lands whereas these commodities can be sold at best prices at home. Instead of focusing on the export of food items, the government should encourage the export of consumer items and Oinished products. There is also need to promote regional trade rather than banking its exports on the distant countries.

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Green light for lychee imports WASHINGTON: Fresh lychee fruit from Taiwan and Vietnam is all but on its way to Australia following the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) giving the importation green light.

DAFF released the final report for the “non-regulated analysis of existing policy for fresh lychee fruit from Taiwan and Vietnam” in April, which recommends the fruit be permitted entry subject to a range of quarantine conditions. Taiwan and Vietnam first requested permission to export lychees to Australia in 2003. Australia has imported fresh lychee fruit from China and Thailand, subject to specific quarantine conditions, since 2004. Fruit from South Africa is also permitted to be imported but according to DAFF, no trade has occurred to date. The final report identifies fruit flies, litchi fruit borer and mealybugs as quarantine pests that require measures.

police should perform their duties honestly: SccI meeting of Sialkot Chamber of Commerce (SCCI) held under the auspicious of President Major (R) Mansoor Ahmed here on other day. Senior Vice President Sarfraz Butt, Vice President Syed Ehtisham and other office bearers also participated in the meeting. Mansoor said the Sialkot police has failed to eradicate crimes in the city whereas the attitude of police is very rude with all citizens.

He said until the police department will not clean from corrupt officials than the crimes will never eradicate.

He said the police is protecting criminals day by day whereas police should perform his duty honestly then crimi-

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nals will leave the field of crime. He said the traders and exporters have not protection by police rather police don’t co-operate with traders and exporters for eradication of crimes. He said the dacoits and robbers are looting traders and exporters while other citizens on roads and their homes but police is not taking action to arrest dacoits and robbers. He said the police reach on any place of incident after very long time after intimation whereas citizens have disappointed by the bad performance of police. In meeting senior vice president Sarfraz Butt said the SCCI has many times higher authorities of police department that clean police department from corrupt officials and black sheep but no better response has so far been received from said authorities. He said the present government should show good governance and clean the police department from corrupt officials.—CB Report

Wednesday February 24, 2016

Chambers

Northern Areas gateway to cpec, says gilgit-Baltistan governor G

LAHORE

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overnor Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Mir Ghazanfar Ali Khan has said that Gilgit-Baltistan has huge potential of investment as with construction of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) the investment scope has been widen and deepened.

He was talking to LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder here at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Former LCCI Presidents Mian Shafqat Ali, Sohail Lashari, former Vice President Aftab Ahmed Vohra, Executive Committee Members Mian Zahid Javed, Abdul Razaq, Nasira Taskeen, Adnan Khalid Butt, Zahid Maqsood, Nasira Taskeen, Zafar Mahmood, Shahzad Waheed, Rizwan Shamsi and other were present on the occasion.

Governor Gilgit-Baltistan said that the Northern Areas have become gateway to CPEC and the strategic and socio economic importance of the GB has increased manifolds. He said that it was a wina-win situation for the potential investors. He said that law and order

situation in GB is not an issue which is the most attractive factor for investment. He said that potential investor must explore investment potential of GB. He said that Gilgit-Baltistan ha huge potential in trade with China, tourism, minerals, gems, precious stones and hydro power. He said that as per the report of GIZ and WAPDA, GB has potential to generate more than 40 thousand mega watt hydro power electricity. He said that a single project Bunji Tunnel can generate 7,100 MW of electricity. He said that in-

vestment in hydro power projects would get rich beneOits. He said that maximum cooperation would be extended to all the investors who would be making investment in Gilgit-Baltistan. He said that organic farming has a very huge potential for the investment because of the availability of a very hardworking human resource and with little crime rate in all the seven districts of Gilgit-Baltistan. Governor GB informed the participants that literacy rate of GB is 56% and by 2018, it will be reached 72%. He said that

low input cost to make pak products competitive

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he cut in the low input cost would make Pakistani products competitive in the international market where Pakistan was losing the international markets to China, India and even Bangladesh.

LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder stated this while addressing a 87-member delegation of 45th Course of Pakistan Navy War College, which visited the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) to get awareness about the role of business community for economic well being of the country.

The delegation was headed by Rear Admiral M. Amjad Khan Niazi.

The LCCI Executive Committee Members were also present on the occasion. Almas Hyder said that only economically strong countries

could play leading role at global level. Business community of the country is well versed of the fact and utilizing its best abilities for economic uplift of the country.

He said that despite having all kinds of resources, we are not there where we should be therefore we have to take full advantage of our best strategic location and vast minerals. The LCCI senior vice president shared his expertise with the visiting ofOicers on economic challenges, energy, federal budget, trade deOicit, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and millennium development goals.

He said that Pakistan has the ability, not only become the regional leader but can also play a decisive role at global level.

He said that strong public-private partnership can help surmounting the unprecedented economic challenges being faced by the country.

The Lahore Chamber of Commerce

and Industry would continue its untiring efforts in this regard. He said that the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry aims to promote trade and investment in the country through enacting upon the policies of the government and securing a business friendly environment in the country. Almas Hyder said that the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry also tries to secure a business-friendly environment through sharing views with the government. The primary objective of LCCI is to protect the interests of the business community while remaining committed to the cause of development of the country. He said that there are a number of issues that must be tackled on priority, the biggest one is how to keep the momentum of growth in the wake of a less than targeted growth of the Agriculture and the Manufacturing sector.

one of the districts of GB, Hunza has almost 100% literacy rate which is unique in Pakistan. Speaking on the Occasion, the LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder said that Gilgit-Baltistan sectors like hydro energy, dry food, and precious stones are the actual treasure, which, if thoroughly tapped, will change the fate of this region. He said that the investment in Gilgit-Baltistan would not only be beneficial to that particular area but it would also help strengthen the economy of the country.

$2b earnings: Rice exporters ask for zero tax regime he rice exporters have urged the government to announce the industry zero-rated sales tax status as exporters are facing liquidity crunch in the face of pending tax refund claims. Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) Chairman Muhammad Shafique, in a statement, said that the association’s members are terming the liquidity crunch a major stumbling block in the way of improving exports, as huge amounts are still stuck in refund claims with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), squeezing finances and causing cash-flow problems. He praised the restoration of zero-rated tax regime by the prime minister for five sectors, including textile, leather, carpet, sports

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Spain to control pepper imports Wednesday February 24, 2016

World

HANOI: Spain will initiate special measures to control black pepper imports to this country after a warning about high residue of carbendazim fungicide found in some batches of Vietnamese pepper.

The warning was issued by the European Commission (EC), according to the Viet Nam’s Trade Office in Spain.

The office said the EC issued the warning after authorities in Malta detected high carbendazim residue in Phuc Sinh Joint Stock Company’s batches of black pepper imported to the country.

Initially, Spain will retain the special control measures until there are official guarantees in quality inspection from exporting countries and/or result of inspection for next imports that reach quality standards, or until the EC issues general control measures for its all member countries, the office said.

uS customs seizes liquid heroin worth $168,000 LAREDO

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S Customs and Border Protection (CBP) ofOicers recently discovered liquor bottles spiked with an even more noxious ingredient than alcohol; approximately $168,000 in alleged liquid heroin.

“We may have changed the location where we process our bus trafOic but the resolve, inspection skills and experience of our frontline ofOicers remains the same and that tenacity resulted in the seizure of a signiOicant amount of hard narcotics in liquid form,” said Port Director Gregory Alvarez, Laredo Port of Entry. The seizure occurred on Feb. 15 at Lincoln-Juarez Bridge. A CBP ofOicer referred a 46 year-old female Mexican citizen bus passenger from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico for a secondary inspection. During the ex-

Instant customs clearing for top global expos aking advantage of the advanced single-window clearance system, Nadeeb, at ports of entries in Qatar, the General Authority of Customs (GAC) for the first time is providing instant clearing services for exhibitions. The special service will be first used in the Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition (DJWE) which begins here on Monday.

The system facilitates temporary release measures for clearing agents and allows easy goods inventory accurately and in a short time, a senior GAC official said. “Nadeeb represents a real leap and evolution and makes the customs system in Qatar responsive to global requirements set by World Trade Organisation, a standard that attracts global investment and global companies to engage in economic and trade dealings with Qatar without conditions or restrictions.—CB Report

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amination, CBP ofOicers inspected her luggage and found two bottles of liquor. Upon closer examination, CBP ofOicers discovered that the bottles contained a gross weight of 7.4 pounds of liquid heroin. The narcotics have an estimated street value of $168,000. CBP ofOicers arrested the bus passenger and turned her over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) special agents for further investigation.

Meanwhile, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations and Border Patrol Agents apprehended 14 undocumented immigrants from Cuba, after they landed Tuesday in Mona Island. Yesterday CBP issued a Spanish language warning, with the hope of dissuading ventures through the Mona Passage after a wooden vessel shipwrecked near San Pedro de Macoris in the southern coast of the Dominican Republic. (File Photo) Migrants are left stranded by smugglers in the rocks in Mona Island.

$82,000 worth of drugs seized in estevan pot bust

OTTAWA

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stevan police have seized drugs that they say have a street value of $82,000.

Kuwait customs foils attempt to smuggle hashish, captagon

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bdaly custom ofOicers foiled two smuggling attempts of hashish and Captagon to the country. A customs source said the Oirst operation included an attempt to smuggle two kilograms of hashish, while the second included an attempt to smuggle 25,944 Captagon tablets, which were caught with a Syrian truck driver coming from Iraq. Meanwhile, The Criminal Court of First Instance chaired by Judge Mut’eb Al-Ardhi sentenced the main suspect in a drug trafOicking case to life imprisonment and acquitted

Oive others in a lawsuit with the state.

According to the case Oile, the Public Prosecution accused the Oirst four defendants of trafOicking in cocaine without legal authorization. Apparently, the Oirst and second defendants are ex-convicts alleged to have concealed the item inside their luggage on arrival to the country without paying customs duty. The Oifth and sixth defendants were accused of peddling in illicit drug for the same purpose, noting the sixth defendant was also an ex-convict.—CB Report

OfOicers from the Estevan Police Service drug intelligence unit and members of the containment and warrant entry team raided a home in the city, which is about 200 kilometres southeast of Regina.Police didn’t say what kind of drugs were seized, but released several photographs suggesting it was marijuana. Police

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oman, Iran seek to boost trade ties ranian president Hassan Rouhani has called for greater ties between Tehran and Muscat following a meeting with Oman’s foreign minister today. The declaration comes in stark contrast to Iran’s relations with Saudi Arabia, which closed all diplomatic and commercial ties with the country earlier this year following an attack on its Tehran embassy. “The relations between Iran and Oman, which are based upon friendship, fraternity and mutual trust, are exemplary, and Tehran welcomes the expansion of economic cooperation with Muscat,” Rouhani said at the meeting with Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah in

Saudi Arabia, Iraq sells more oil to India

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RIYADH

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ndia’s oil imports from Saudi Arabia and Iraq hit the highest in more than a decade in January as OPEC’s top producers gained at the expense of Latin American crudes, a validation of the OPEC policy of maintaining output and Oight-

ing for market share.

Competitive prices and shorter shipping distances were giving the Middle East members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) the upper hand in India, the world’s third-largest crude oil importer.

Saudi Arabia was the top supplier to India in January, with volumes jumping 29 percent from the

said that when they entered the residence they encountered a man brandishing a machete. He was arrested without incident. The man faces several charges. Meanwhile, The Embassy of China in Canada conOirmed in a statement on its ofOicial website Monday that Chinese citizens have been deported for having pornographic pictures or videos of children on their cellphones or laptops. An ofOicial account “iask-ca” on the WeChat social network, claimed Sunday that two Chinese students who were separately trying to enter the country were recently deported by Canadian customs for having child pornography on their mobile phones. According to iask-ca, Canadian customs found obscene content in the two students’ WeChat, a messaging app, as both students had stickers on their phones portraying children engaged in sexual acts.

Meanwhile, the Chinese embassy statement did not speciOically conOirm the truth of these two cases.

same month a year ago to nearly 940,000 barrels per day (bpd), ship tracking data obtained from sources and data compiled by Thomson Reuters Oil Research & Forecasts showed on Friday.

Just behind was Iraq at 930,000 bpd, up 52 percent from January levels last year. The daily rates from both were at their highest since at least 2001, according to data avail-

Tehran,” according to the Tasnim News Agency. He said the private sectors of both countries could cooperate in the development of ports, civil aviation, railroad transportation and banking activities. Rouhani added that Iran was ready to facilitate the activity of Omani investors and merchants and called on Muscat to do the same for its traders. Abdullah said Oman would offer Iranian merchants special trade facilitation, according to the news agency. On Saturday, the foreign minister also said agreements had been reached for “construction of a gas pipeline, cooperation in the Oield of aviation, trade.—CB Report

able on the Thomson Reuters Eikon terminal. In contrast, India’s total imports from Latin America fell by a quarter in January from a year ago to 706,000 bpd, the data showed.

“We are going slow in the purchase of Latin America oil and have raised supplies from the Middle East,” said H. Kumar, managing director of Mangalore ReOinery and Petrochemicals Ltd.

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Finland oil prices to remain low this year HELSINKI: Oil prices will remain low at 40-50 U.S. dollars later this year, due to shale oil revolution and others, an energy expert said on Friday. “This is a rebalancing of the global market, and I think that many decision makers outside and even inside of North America did not anticipate how strong this shale revolution could be,” said Daniel Yergin,vice chairman of information consultancy IHS. The shale revolution that happened in the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer, was very significant and it had a big impact on markets, said Yerin, who is also the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power”.

coSco declared preferred investor for greek piraeus port privatisation

Ports & Shipping

Brazil registers record volume through ports in 2015

he Greek privatization fund announced here the other day that China’s COSCO was formally declared the preferred investor for the privatization of Greece’s largest port, Piraeus. The board of directors of the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF) declared COSCO acquired 67 percent of the shares of Piraeus Port Authority (PPA) in accordance with the terms of the tender process, the HRADF said in a statement. On Jan 20, HRADF accepted COSCO’s binding offer of 368.5 million euros ($410.6 million) for the controlling stake in PPA. After Wednesday’s decision, the tender dossier will be submitted directly to the Court of Audit for pre-contractual control and the share sale contract will be

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signed after the approval of the court, while the completion of the transaction is subject to the competent authorities’ approvals, HRADF’s statement concluded. The process should be completed by May, according to HRADF sources. few hours earlier, Greece’s highest administrative court, the Council of State, had dismissed the appeal of various opponents to the privatization of the port authorities of Piraeus as well as Thessaloniki (OLTH) in northern Greece.

Under the terms of the tender, COSCO has committed to invest 350 million euros over the next decade in infrastructure works at the port. Studies by Greece’s Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE) and other Greek and foreign experts showed that the COSCO’s development plan for the port will bring additional long-term revenues of 5.1 billion euros per year to the Greek economy and add some 125,000 jobs until the new concession agreement expires in 2052.—CB Report

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argo movement at Brazil’s main ports registered a record in 2015, totaling 1,006 billion tons, according to the Ports Secretary OfOice. The volume is the highest ever registered in the country, and according to National Water Transport Agency (ANTAQ) ofOicials the forecast is that the country’s ports will set another record in 2016. Ports in Brazil registered record volume of transport in 2015,

photo courtesy of ANTAQ. According to ofOicial data the greatest type of cargo passing through Brazilian ports were bulk solids, responsible for over 62 percent of the movement. This was followed by bulk liquids, with 22.37 percent and containers, with 9.87 percent.

“We are very optimistic with the performance of port in 2016, and believe that we will continue to grow in volume of cargo transported, as seen in 2015,” said Helder Barbalho, head of the Ports Secretary OfOice. WebPortos, an information platform created by the government to consolidate the operations at Brazilian ports, re-

ported that the highlight last year in terms of speciOic cargo was iron ore. Of the 632,55 million tons of solid bulk transported 364.6, or 57.6 percent was iron ore, followed by soybean products. As for liquid bulk more than half of the 226,22 million (56.4 percent) was petroleum.

The platform also shows that more than 64 percent of products being shipped to and from international markets passed through private terminals, not public ones. ANTAQ ofOicials say that 2016 will set another record. “Our expectation is that with the improvement in the modus operandi of rail lines, we will set another record in 2016.

Wednesday February 24, 2016

uK port to receive multi-million boost n a bid to expand the Port of Dundee, Forth Ports, which are the company that own the port, has announced that an investment of US$14 million will put it at the forefront of the oil and gas decommissioning and offshore wind sectors, according to the BBC. Charles Hammond, CEO of Forth Ports, said: “This is an important, privately funded investment for the Port of Dundee, which is ideally placed to service the needs of North Sea oil and gas, decommissioning and Scotland’s offshore wind sector over the coming years. “The port’s existing skills base and location, combined with its riverside berths, deep water and rock river bed, put the port in a key position to become a hub for these sectors for construction, operations and maintenance and for decommissioning.”

The latest developments in the UK revolve around container weighing. Port Technology recently reported that DP World is the latest operator to offer its own solution for tackling the upcoming SOLAS regulation, which is due to come into effect on July 1, 2016.

Meanwhile, The Port of Felixstowe has confirmed that it will offer a container weighing service to ensure UK shippers are able to comply with new international regulations that will come into effect on 1 July 2016. Commenting on the new service, Stephen Abraham, Chief Operating Officer of Port of Felixstowe, said.—CB Report

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Rail shipments of coal slump at start of 2016

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WASHINGTON

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S shipments of coal by rail have started the year signiOicantly lower than the same period in 2015, according to data from the Association of American Railroads (AAF). Coal carloads fell 30.3% in the week ending 6 February – the latest week data is available for – to 73 298 carloads, continuing a trend seen in January, when coal carloads were down

33.3% on 2015. 2016 coal rail shipments (purple) have slumped by about a third compared to 2015 (blue) The slump in coal shipments comes as US utilities turn increasingly to low-cost natural gas, as well as drawing down stockpiles of coal that stood at 175.8 million short t at the end of October 2015, according to date from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Meanwhile, Peabody Energy said it expects shipments of coal to fall by between 150 and 170 million short this year on projected coal plant re-

tirements and natural gas switching, which will see utility demand for coal fall by 40 – 60 million short t, as well as stockpile drawdown.

In its recent full-year results release, US rail company Norfolk Southern announced coal revenues down US$1.8 billion in 2015 due to a 16% fall in volumes and announced a series of measures to control costs in 2016.

Earlier in January the company said it would combine its Virginia and Pocahontas divisions, which cover the Appalachian coal region,

into one new Pocahontas division, saying that it needed to be “nimble and adapt to changing market conditions.”

Fellow US rail operators, BNSF – which covers the Power River Basin (PRB) in the west of the country – revised its agreement with PRB coal miners Cloud Peak Energy, removing volume obligations for the period 2016 – 2018: another acknowledgement that coal shipments were to be lower than forecast when the agreements were first signed.

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IHC adjourns hearing of tax references until March 9 ISLAMABAD: A division bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday adjourned the hearing of tax references involving Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue and Federal Board of Revenue. The bench, comprising Justice Noorul Haq N Qureshi and Justice Athar Minallah, heard the tax references filed against Customs Appellate Tribunal, Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue and authorities of the Regional Tax Office and Large Taxpayer’s Unit. During the course of hearing, the bench heard arguments of both sides on three references.

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

CUSTOMS BULLETIN

Strong tax base necessary for sound economy: fBR member Rehmatullah wazir SIALKOT ZAfAR mAlIK

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ederal Board of Revenue (FBR) Member Rehmat Ullah Wazir has assured the tax payers and businessmen that no old tax cases of the taxpayers would be opened who would deposit their tax returns under the FBR’s recently launched tax amnesty scheme. He made this assurance while addressing a largely-attended convention of the local traders, taxpayers and notables at Gujranwala here. Chief Commissioner Inland Revenue Gujranwala Mansur Ahmed Bajwa presided over the convention. Wazir said that all the cases to be submitted before the FBR under this scheme would be exempted from all kinds of the audits.The FBR member stressed the need for changing the mindset of the people to extend the tax net, saying that bringing the maximum people under the tax net was the task of the FBR which would strengthen the national economy. He sought the active cooperation of the traders and notables in bringing the maximum people under the tax net , saying that a strong tax base was direly needed for boosting the national economy.

Dar discusses revenue targets with fBR high-ups LAHORE

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he Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has discussed the revenue targets set to be achieved during the period from January to June 2016, ofOicial sources told Customs Today.

Sources said that Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, during a meeting, appreciated the efforts of the FBR for expanding the tax net and fa-

cilitating the tax payers. The meeting had detailed deliberations on the Voluntary Tax Compliance Scheme. The meeting took note of the fact that the scheme had been warmly received by traders and members of the business community. The meeting was informed, FBR would undertake an awareness campaign to project the beneOits of the scheme and encourage the business community to contribute to the national exchequer with greater zeal. Senior ofOicials of the Ministry of Finance and FBR attended the meeting.

Meanwhile, Special Assistant to

Prime Minister on Revenue Haroon Akhtar Khan has said that the government wanted to facilitate small traders by offering immunity to their bank accounts under Voluntary Tax Compliance Scheme (VTCS) 2016. Addressing an awareness session on VTCS at the Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI), he said that a new bill was being Oloated to conOiscate all ‘Be-nami’ bank accounts in the country.

The session was also attended

by Mian Muhammad Idrees, former president of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of commerce

and Industry (FPCCI), and Mohsin Nadeem, president of the All Pakistan Tax Bar Association.

He said that all macro-economic indicators were positive and the government had been striving hard to make Pakistan economically strong and prosperous.

He said that despite various hurdles, the government had successfully reigned in the challenges of load shedding, inOlation and availability of capital. He said the Government had also resolved the gas issue as LNG was available at a comparatively cheaper rate.

“The government has completed

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one LNG terminal while four are in the different stages of completion, similarly, the government is laying gas pipeline from Iran to Pakistan while another line will be laid between Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India to cater to our future needs and these mega projects will make Pakistan energy surplus country within next Oive years”, he added. He said that $ 46 billion Chinese investment would also bring prosperity in the region in addition to generating much needed economic activity and helping Pakistan to attain the desired 7 percent growth rate of GDP.