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Karachi, Tue February 7, 2017

ISLAMABAD

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he government strengthened tax administration, reduced tax concessions /exemptions and implemented strategies to improve the business climate.

Therefore, the domestic resource mobilization strategy helped in achieving higher revenue growth and tax to GDP ratio in recent years. As a result, the tax to GDP ratio which was 9.8 percent of the GDP in 2012-13, has increased to 12.4 percent

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of the GDP during 2015-16,” a source at the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) told Customs Today. Low inRlation, low interest rate environment has enabled the government further reduce cost of the domestic debt portfolio thus resulting in signiRicant savings to the economy. Despite repayments of foreign loans amounting over $12 billion by the government in last three years, the source said that the foreign exchange reserves were presently recorded at over $24 billion up from $11 billion as at end June 2013. Improved international ratings have enabled the government to borrow internationally at historically low levels thus further reducing the cost of external borrowing. The source said that enhanced tune of revenue collection also enabled the government to raise development budget gradually and adequately in order to meet the investment requirements of a growing economy.

Quetta Customs thwarts smuggling bids, seizes goods worth Rs40m

‘FTO to form body to provide speedy & cheap justice to taxpayers’

Pakistan's net public debt crosses Rs18 trillion mark

Govt should facilitate traders to boost taxation: AC LTU Rehan Safder

Rs12b worth Customs terminal to be set up at Torkham: Collector Qurban

The Custom officials have thwarted two smuggling bids and seized foreign goods | See pAge 02 |

Abdur Rauf FTO has said the business community is playing an important role | See pAge 03 |

Pakistan’s net public debt has crossed the Rs18.28 trillion mark, rising about 35pc | See pAge 04 |

The Govt should facilitate traders to increase taxation If traders will earn more | See pAge 11 |

A modern customs terminal will be established on Torkham border Rs12b | See pAge 16 |

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Customs ASO impounds goods & vehicle worth Rs4.63m Tuesday, February 7, 2017

National

ISLAMABAD: The Customs Anti-Smuggling Organization (ASO) impounded goods and a vehicle valued Rs4.63million during a checking on G.T Road Rawalpindi on 28th of January 2017. According to details told by Deputy Collector Preventive Ansar Anees, the ASO set up a picket on G.T Road after getting a tip-off. A vehicle, coming from Rawalpindi to Peshawar, was intercepted by the anti-smuggling staff after which miscellaneous goods along with an offending vehicle were impounded.

Deputy collector asked the possessors of Hino bus with registration No. KSE-1655 to prove the status of the imported goods but they failed.

Quetta customs thwarts smuggling bids, seizes goods worth Rs40m

FAISALABAD

QUETTA

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he Customs Adjudication Deputy Collector Asma Hameed has issued a show cause notice to owner of non duty paid sofa cloth.

Sources told Customs Today that Anti Smuggling Organization (ASO) intercepted a vehicle near Jhang Road and recovered huge quantity sofa cloth. The ASO team asked the owner of the vehicle who was identified as Tasawar Ahmed to show documents regarding legal import of sofa cloth but he failed to produce any legal documents regarding possession of the above said items. Therefore, the ASO team impounded the goods under customs laws and forwarded the case to Customs Adjudication for further legal action. Now, Deputy Collector Asma Hameed issued notice to the accused person on the violation of Section 10-A. 89(1) and 156(1) of the Customs Act, 1969 punishable under Section 156(1)89 of the Customs Act, 1969 and served him a show cause notice as to why the seized item should not be confiscated under aforementioned provisions of the law. However, the adjudication has directed the accused person to file reply on next date of hearing.

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he Custom officials have thwarted two smuggling bids and seized foreign goods from Sorab and Baleli check posts. The smuggled goods, including Iranian tyres, diesel, cigarettes and automobile spare parts are worth Rs 40 million.

Collector Dr Saeed Khan Jadoon, on a tipoff that some smugglers intended to smuggle foreign goods, formed a special team headed by Deputy Collector (Preventive) Junaid Mehmood. The team raided Sorab check post and recovered 32,000 litres Iranian diesel and other goods costing Rs 20 million.

In another raid at Baleli check post, the Custom staffers seized various foreign goods worth Rs 20 million. According to Deputy Collector Customs (Preventive) Junaid Mehmood, his raiding team had foiled smuggling attempts and seized foreign goods.

Efforts were underway to rid the province of the menace of smuggling, he added.

Meanwhile, Collector Dr Saeed Khan Jadoon has said that Custom Department surpassed the target of Rs7.2 billion set by Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and submitted Rs14.2 billion revenue in the national exchequer.

While addressing the Interna-

Dc Asma issues notice to owner of non-duty paid goods

tional Customs Day ceremony, Dr Saeed said the Custom Department is offering special relief and facilities on tax payment to defaulters aiming at to discourage illicit trade and smuggling. He said new check posts were being established to thwart illegal ways of trade in the

province, adding that the department is determined to cross the targets set by Federal Board of Revenue this year too. Regarding establishment of gate on Taftan border, Dr Saeed said a number of challenges had been addressed through gate construction and ef-

forts were underway to facilitate traders and civilians there.

Later, he distributed shields and honorary certificates among Custom officers and staff who displayed high performance in cases of drugs recovery and thwarting smuggling bids.

LeAs register 230 cases under anti-money laundering act

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ISLAMABAD

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he law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) have registered at least 230 cases under Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Act, the interior division data revealed According to the data, the number of cases registered under Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) was 498. The number of cases registered as Suspicious

Transaction Reports (STRs) from Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) was 116. The data highlighted the details of registration of such cases and steps being taken to curb sources of such funds revealed these relevant cases are under investigation in provinces.

The data further revealed that Anti Money Laundering Act 2010 has been enacted, and, AML Rules, 2008 have also been framed.

The government has signed to International Convention on Suppres-

sion of Financing of Terrorism adopted by General Assembly of the United Nations in its resolution.

Moreover, in order to strengthen anti-terrorist regime, especially with a focus to choke terrorists funding sources, amendments in ATA 1997 have been introduced in March 2013 and in June, 2014 respectively. The basic objective was to make the law more effective and harmonized with international best practices. Rules under ATA 1997 for freezing of assets of terrorist have

been framed and are with Law and Justice Division for Rinal vetting.

The government has so far proscribed 62 organizations under provision of ATA 1997 while State Bank of Pakistan has issued detailed Regulations to all banks, for strict compliance, regarding anti-money laundering/terrorist Rinancing. These Regulations are regularly updated by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Prevention of Electronic Crime Act (PECA) 2016 has been promulgated which makes collection of

funds for terrorist organizations through any information system or electronic devices in offence.

Similarly, Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) has also been set up which is now fully functional. FMU is regularly sending Suspicious Transactions Reports (STR) and Currency Transaction Reports (CTR) about suspects to various agencies like Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF), National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Bureau of Revenue.

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Faisalabad Customs Intelligence seizes items worth Rs1.9m FAISALABAD: The Customs Intelligence and Investigation team confiscated miscellaneous goods worth Rs1.9 million involving duty and taxes of Rs0.79 million during road checking.

Sources told Customs Today that Customs Intelligence team was on routine checking near Gattwala Toll Plaza. The customs team intercepted a Mazda mini truck bearing registration no: LEI-14-6809. The customs team checked the vehicle and recovered miscellaneous items including cookware set (15 carton) German origin, Boxiya brand electric lunch box (10 carton), electric heater (7 carton), electric fan heater (5 carton), Reo Vova brand knife set (16 carton), porcelain mug (22 carton).

Sialkot customs to launch crackdown on gujranwala petrol pumps soon

Tuesday February 7, 2017

National

‘fto to form body to provide speedy & cheap justice to taxpayers’

SIALKOT

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he Pakistan Customs Department and Customs Intelligence are all set to launch a major crackdown on the petrol pumps located in outskirts of Gujranwala region which are involved in sale of smuggled Iranian fuel, it is learnt. The operation will be launched by the Anti-Smuggling Organization (ASO) of the Model Customs Collectorate (MCC) Sialkot and Customs Intelligence and Investigation Department against six districts of Gujranwala Region namely Gujranwala, Sialkot, Gujrat, Narowal, Hafizabad and Mandi Bahawaldin. It is worth mentioning here that earlier the ASO of MCC Sialkot and Customs Intelligence and Investigation Department had launched operations.

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faisalabad fiA arrests notorious human trafficker FAISALABAD

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he Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Faisalabad has arrested a human trafficker namely Tanveer Karamat son of Karamat Ali during an action. The suspect is residential of Government Colony Tanki Chowk Okara. Sources told Customs Today, that FIA Deputy Director Syed Imam Zaidi and Sub inspector Taimoor Haider conducted a raid along with his team near Bismillah Hotal Susan Road Faisalabad and arrested the accused who was running illegal business of sending innocent people abroad after extorting big amounts from them. The FIA team also recovered from his possession four original Pakistani passport and some copies of passport were recovers.

Moreover, while checking of mobile phone of the accused scanned copies of FIRs, affidavit CNICs of different people of passport, sticker visa of Canada, labour demand of different countries.

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ISLAMABAD

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bdur Rauf Chaudhry, Federal Tax Ombudsman, has said the business community is playing an important role in the economic development of the country and he will constitute a committee, comprising representatives of ICCI and FTO, to address complaints of taxpayers for providing them with speedy justice.

He said this while expressing his views at Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He assured the businessmen of taking up the highlighted issues of their community with chairman, FBR, for remedial measures. He said the powers of FBR Intelligence Department need to be curtailed to remove the elements of harassment in the business community.

Highlighting the initiatives of his organization, he said the Federal Tax Ombudsman was established in 2000 to address tax complaints of aggrieved taxpayers. He said the FTO normally receives 1500-2000 complaints and 90% of the complaints are decided in favour of aggrieved parties.

He said eight regional ofRices of the FTO are working in various cities and more ofRices are in the pipeline to provide inexpensive and speedy justice to aggrieved taxpayers. In his welcome address, Khalid Iqbal Malik, President, Islamabad

Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the taxpayers are contributing to the revenue generation of the country and it is need of the hour that government should take policy measures to make tax collection system simpler and easier.

He appreciated the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) for agreeing to form a joint committee and hoped that it would be helpful in redressing tax grievances. He said the FTO has reconstituted its Advisory Com-

He said the powers of fBR intelligence Department need to be curtailed to remove the elements of harassment in the business community. Highlighting the initiatives of his organization, he said the federal tax ombudsman was established in 2000 to address tax complaints of aggrieved taxpayers

Dg Valuation issues value of medical equipment

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KARACHI

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www.customsbulletin.com he Directorate General of Customs Valuation has revised the customs value of Medical Items through Valuation Ruling No 1021/2017 under Section 25A of the Customs Act, 1969.

This Directorate General has earlier circulated reference customs values of different medical items/equipment Vide Valuation Data Base Letter Nos.83/2016,

84/2016, 143/2016, 144/2016, 145/2016, 159/2016, 160/2016, 161/2016 and 162/2016. However, some importers approached this Directorate General and requested revision of certain VDBs. Therefore, this Directorate General initiated an exercise for determination of customs value for the subject goods.

Meeting with stakeholders was held on 25-01-2017. The stakeholders were requested to furnish the following documents before or during the course of above said meeting, Invoices of im-

ports during last three months showing factual value, Websites, names and E-mail addresses of known foreign manufacturers of the item in question through which the actual current value can be ascertained, Copies of Contracts made / LCs opened during the last three months showing the value of item in question, Copies of Sales Tax Invoices issued during last four months showing the difference in price (excluding duty and taxes) to substantiate that the beneRit of difference in price is passed on to the local buyers.

mittee which is laudable and emphasized that periodic meetings of said committee should be called on regular basis to sort out the issues of taxpayers.

Khalid Malik, Senior Vice-President, Tahir Ayub, Vice-President ICCI, Khalid Javed, Tariq Sadiq, Mian Shaukat Masud, Sanaullah Khan, Khalid Chaudhry, Mian Waqas and others also spoke and highlighted the issues that need the attention of the FTO.

fiA arrests 12 over fake visas he Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), in its ongoing campaign against fake visa holders, agents and their facilitators, has offloaded 12 passengers and arrested seven other involved in this illegal business. The FIA has formed a special team to deal with the steel cage to get rid of any attempt to use fake documents. During this campaign seven people were arrested at Islamabad International Airport.

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Govt stopped from taking action against app-based taxi service provider Tuesday February 7, 2017

Business

LAHORE: The High Court has stopped the Punjab government from taking action against a private app-based taxi service provider.

Justice Shahid Waheed passed the orders on a petition filed by A-1 cars challenging Punjab government’s ban on his services.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel arguing before the court submitted that the government had declared private app-based taxi service providers illegal despite the fact that no legislation was carried out in that regard. He contended that no action could be taken against the taxi service provider in the absence of legislation.

pakistan's net public debt crosses Rs18tr ISLAMABAD

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akistan’s net public debt has crossed the Rs18.28 trillion mark, rising about 35pc during the tenure of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN). This was reported by the ministry of Rinance, in response to a question from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MNA Shahida Rehmani in the National Assembly last week.

“The volume of net public debt as on Sept 30, 2016 was Rs18,277.6 billion,” the ministry’s response said.

Total public debt stood at Rs13.48tr at the end of Riscal year 2012-13 almost three years ago.

Minister warns fake milk seller mafia LAHORE

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The major contribution to the increase in net public debt came from an almost 40pc rise in domestic debt, which rose from Rs8.686tr at the end of 2013 to Rs12.14tr at the end of the Rirst quarter of the current Riscal year (FY 2016-17).

Service Road of koral interchange clears for normal traffic

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rovincial Minister for Food Bilal Yasin warned owners of dairy farms and milk seller mafia to refrain from selling adulterated and unhygienic milk in the province. Talking to the media during an early morning operation against “Gawala” Mafia here at Gajumata on Sunday, he said culprits involved in this business would be imprisoned. He said the food authority had deputed teams at entrance and existing points of major cities to inspect supply of milk to cities.

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Explaining the reasons behind the surge, the Rinance ministry said that public debt was mainly obtained to Rinance the Riscal deRicit and was approved by the parliament. Some of the Rinancing had to be done in the form of external loans, to supplement

the domestic resources required to accelerate the pace of economic development and make positive contributions towards developing the country’s infrastructure base.

“These loans were obtained for Rinancing of projects of national importance, budgetary and balance of payments support, earthquake and Rloods, rehabilitation assistance and import of urea and crude oil,” the ministry said. Another purpose of these loans was to build external buffers to protect against exchange rate volatility and absorb external shocks. The ministry explained that domestic debt was perpetual in nature and mostly reRinanced year-onyear, while most of the external loans contracted by the present government were ‘economical’ and dominated by long-term funding.

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ISLAMABAD

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he Service Road (West), part of under-construction Koral Interchange, has been opened for trafRic. The commuters heading to Airport from Rawat can use the Service Road, said the CDA ofRicials on Sunday. They said construction work on Service Road (East) of Koral Interchange and 64 meter long roof of central Rlyover has also been completed. The Rlyover has been facilitated with three lanes on its both

sides as well as footpaths for pedestrian. These details were shared during a brieRing to the Mayor of Islamabad and Chairman Capital Development Authority (CDA), Sheikh Anser Aziz on the occasion of his visit to Koral Interchange. On this occasion, Member Engineering CDA, Asad Mehboob Kiyani and Project Director Koral Interchange were also present. Reviewing progress about the development activities at Koral Interchange, the Mayor said that delay in completion of Koral Interchange project would not be tolerated. He directed for an

effective strategy to complete construction work on different parts of Koral Interchange simultaneously within the stipulated time. He said that Islamabad Expressway SignalFree Corridor project is of immense importance. He further said that after completion of Koral Interchange, work on different phases of Islamabad Expressway Signal-Free Corridor project would also be started in line with the directions of PM of Pakistan. He directed the Project Director to start immediate landscaping work on loops, which has less trafRic Rlow.

new consumers of kw&SB to be brought into tax net KARACHI

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arachi Water and Sewerage Board (KW&SB) Managing Director Misbahuddin Fareed has directed the Tax Directorate to take effective measures to further increase the revenue and also bring the new consumers into the tax net. He said this while addressing a meeting of the tax officials of the Water Board, said a statement on Friday. He called upon the tax officers to perform their duties with devotion and honesty to improve their performance. He has stressed them to run the affairs of the organization transparently and on merit. Misbahuddin Fareed said that the negligent officials will not be spared and strict action will be taken against them. The KW&SB MD also directed the officials concerned to issue notices to those consumers for recovery of dues of Water Board and after expiry of notice period the connections of defaulter should be disconnected. The field officers regularly attend duty and after marking their entry sent the same to their respective areas, he directed. He further directed that the district offices should also ensure that on-demand issuance of duplicates bills to consumers.

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nepra evaluates 10 distribution companies performance LAHORE

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he Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco) was topranked power distribution company (Disco) while Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) ranked in the bottom Rive amongst total ten Discos of country, according to National Electric Power Regulatory Authority, (Nepra)'s per-

formance evaluation report for 2014-15. Nepra in its latest performance evaluation report assessed performance of Pakistan's Discos including Iesco, Pesco, Gujranwala Electric Power Company (Gepco) Faisalabad Electricity Supply Company (Fesco), Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco), Multan Electricity Power Company (Mepco), Quetta Electricity Supply Company (Qesco), Sukkur Electricity Power Company (Sepco), Hyder-

abad Electricity Supply Company (Hesco) & K-electric based on the data as reported by them for the year 2014-15.

Due to the issue of reliability of data which was veriRied by Nepra's team during monitoring of Discos, the Performance Ranking was restricted to only four parameters i.e.

T&D Losses, Recovery, Time Frame for New Connections and Safety.

Considering the performance data as reported by distribution compa-

nies with respect to Performance Standards set under Performance Standards (Distribution) Rules (PSDR) & Distribution Code, each company has been awarded marks on the basis of parameters. Accordingly, Iesco secured Rirst position owing to its plausible performance in losses, recovery, & time frame for new connection as reported by it in its Annual Performance Report (APR).

Whereas, Sepco remained at last (10th) position due to its poor per-

formance primarily in the segments of losses & time frame for new connections. It is important to note that Gepco & Mepco have same marks but they are assigned second & third positions respectively keeping in view, the number of fatal accidents in these distribution companies. Further, while ranking the distribution companies, safety has been given more importance & discos having more than 2 fatal accidents, have been awarded zero marks.

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eDitoRiAL

Averting doomsday scenario

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t is good omen that Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has clarified the government’s position on the country’s debt profile and dispelled the impression that Pakistan is heading toward any doomsday scenario. However, he has presented a fictional comparison on the issue of taking foreign loans between his and the previous government tenures. In his opinion, the previous government took around Rs7.833 trillion loan during its five-year term from 2008 to 2013, showing an average annual compounded growth rate of 19 percent, but the average loans rate during the present government’s three years tenure stands at 9.75 percent. He further argues that the net debt-to-GDP ratio on June 2008 was 53.1 percent which increased to 60.2 percentin five years until June 2013 when the current government took over the office. And that net debt-to-GDP ratio remained unchanged during the three years government of the Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz from June 2013 to June 2016. As a matter of fact, it is the routine in Pakistan for the ministers to defend the wrong policies of governmentsbut censure the policies of the past governments.

Mr Dar’s narratives make no difference of him with his peers in the past on the issue of performance of the government.

However, the only differentiation is that he defended the continuous addition in the stockpile of foreign debts, saying as a developing country it is inevitable.The current government is facing the challenges of good governance and has failed to prove its mettle in financial discipline. The financial management is the area of concern as finding solution to financial woes in foreign loans is not an answer. The only way to improve the financial health of the country is to generate income from local resources which are business and industry. But both of these sectors are not only facing mismanagement but also a kind of chaos.

It is hard to start a business and sustain it in a hostile environment due to unwanted interference of the officialsfor apparently personal gains. The business community accounts are checked at various stages from the utility bills to their standard of living, but the officials are immune to any check and balance at any stage.

Loans not panacea to economic woes A

LAHORE

DR AftAB AfZAL

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ccording to newspaper reports, the total public debts of the country stood at Rs17.5trillion in June 2015, but reached Rs20.6trillion in September 2016, showing an increase of around Rs3trillion in one year. In terms of percentage, the government has crossed the threshold of public debt-to-government ratio of 350 percent which has reached 442 percent.The hard fact is that the government has exhausted its funding for the development of human resources. How the policymakers will generate new funds in this situation should be understandable to the general public

keeping in view the past experiences where the executive orders have disRigured the shape of the tax system in the country. On the external front, the total debt liabilities in June 2015 stood at $61.4 billion, but crossed $74 billion mark a year later. In percentage term, the external debt crossed 14.5 percent last year.

The government has issued the Debt Policy Statement 2016-17 which is the Rirst statement after the government amended the Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation (FRDL) Act of 2005 in June last year. The internal and external debts are continuously increasing in the absence of a reliable Riscal discipline.

The Rinancial experts question the ability and capacity of the gov-

ernment to manage public debts and liabilities which are increasing with every passing year. The government is looking further loans to run its affairs and the imprudent policies and other knee-jerking steps have left little hope that the government will be able to even deal with the Chinese investment. Experts are already cautioning over the debt servicing which is looming large in the near future, especially the government should have to prepare to pay the bill of Chinese investment in infrastructural projects. The government amended the Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Act to increase the limit of public debt-to-GDP ratio, allowing it to cross the public debt beyond 60 percent of the total size of national

economy. Earlier, the limit was below 60 percentbut the gross public debt-to-GDP ratio reached 66.5 percent last Riscal year after the amendment.The current Riscal constraints speak of the inability of the government to boost the revenue generation through taxes.

Industry is the principal revenue generation sector, but imposition of new taxes has curtailed not only investment, but also production capacity of the industrial units.

The government took various steps to rein in corruption and document the economy but the steps are mostly backRired. Enactment of laws and reforms are the processes and the society, which still could not recover from the colonial past, cannot be puriRied with one blow.

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Subsea firms expect export growth LONDON: British subsea companies are expecting to increase overseas activity in the next 12 months, according to a survey conducted by industry body, Subsea UK. Of the 300 member companies surveyed, 27% are predicting increasing exports by 50% or more in 2017. More than half (56%) expect overseas sales to increase between 1% and 49% with only 17% not expecting any increase in export revenues. A third of companies surveyed do not yet know what effect Brexit will have on their export plans, with 49% believing that it will have no impact on their plans. By comparison, 32% expect domestic revenues to remain static in 2017 while 22% are anticipating a decline in domestic sales. Of those who expect domestic revenues to increase, the majority are forecasting between 10% and 30% additional revenues from the UK Continental Shelf.

Ayaz Sadiq to take up businessmen issues with pM for remedial measures ISLAMABAD

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peaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, said that he would take up the issues of business community in writing with Prime Minister of Pakistan Mian Nawaz Sharif so that he could arrange their solution with personal interest. He said this while talking to a delegation of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry that called on him led by its president Khalid Iqbal Malik.

Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said that he would try to arrange the meetings of ICCI delegation with interior minister, chairman FBR, chairman CDA and

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chairmen NA Standing Committees on Finance, Commerce and Industries so that business community could brief these forums in detail about its issues for remedial measures. He said business community was the backbone of the economy and government was committed to resolve their issues to facilitate the growth of business activities and investment in the country.

Speaking at the occasion, Khalid Iqbal Malik, president, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry highlighted the key issues of business community. He said Sheikh Anser Aziz, Chairman CDA belonged to the private sector and was serious in resolving problems of trade and industry, but the bureaucracy was proving major hurdle for him in such efforts.

However, he hoped that Chairman CDA would make all possible efforts to address key issues of traders and industrialists.

Tuesday February 7, 2017

Chambers

All pakistan chambers to form body to redress apprehensions of traders A

FAISALABAD

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ll Pakistan Chambers President’s Conference has adopted a resolution demanding a joint committee of all chambers to redress the apprehensions of the business community regarding China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

This resolution was moved by Engineer Muhammad Saeed Sheikh President Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) during the 9th All Pakistan Chambers President’s Conference held in Bhurban. Raja Amir Iqbal President Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) will head this committee while Presidents of all chambers of commerce and Industry across the country or their nominated representative will be included in this committee.

The committee will exclusively discuses and recommend the necessary remedial measures to dispel the apprehensions of the business community regarding relocation of Chinese industries under the CPEC. The committee will also indentify the industries that could be estab-

lished under the fourth phase of CPEC. “Only those industries will be allowed to be installed that will be equally beneRicially for Pakistan and china”, he said and added that incentives offered to the Chinese investors must be allowed to the local investors including the existing local industry. “Moreover preference

should be given to labor intensive industry in order to accommodate maximum workforce in these industries”, he added.

Engineer Muhammad Saeed Sheikh said that economic policies should be framed in consultation with the stakeholders so that the ultimate objective of progress and

pak-Afghan exporters for provision of banking facilities on border

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PESHAWAR

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he Pak-Afghan exporters observed the International Customs Day with a commitment of cooperation with the Customs House Peshawar to generate duties for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.

Mohamed Iqbal, Senior VicePresident of Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), on Thursday said the Pak-Afghan exporters are facing problems while making online money transfers.

He threw light on the duties of customs ofRicials and praised the conversion of the Tax Collecting Agency into State Department for Inland Revenue. He appreciated the customs ofRicials for solving the

problems of Afghan exporters due to deposits through Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) online VBAK system by making online e-Form at commercial bank about sales document header’s data. Pak-Afghan exporters accompanied the delegates of Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry and stressed the need for making upgrade of the system at Torkham Border and Swat gateways. The delegation was hosted by

Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi, Ahmad Ali Farooq and Faiz Mohammed Faizi.

Currency OfRicer, The State Bank of Pakistan Peshawar (SBPP), Aftab Alam, was also informed about the hardships faced during online banking along the border and lack of SMS facility by commercial banks.

Assistant Chief Manager S B P P was informed about the efRiciency of the National Bank’s booth on Torkham Border.

Assistant Zonal Heads of the commercial banks were also in the meeting to Rind a solution to the difRiculty in opening corporate bank accounts and lack of bank’s facility at Torkham Gate and Ghulam Khan check-post. The currency ofRicer assured the delegation of eliminating difRiculties arisen due to upgrade of the system.

prosperity could be achieved. Giving the details of the proceedings of the conference, he told that during Rirst session of the Rirst day approximately 50 points were raised and discussed which were later on trimmed to nine only for taking up with the government ofRicials for comprehensive discussion.

uS 2017 coking coal export growth hinges on H2 volumes he US market is expecting coking coal export volumes may grow in 2017 to recover from a recent contraction, but the jury is still out on any return to the “good old days” of 20112012. The exports a source of increasing debate and interest helping determine overall global balance of supply and pricing for mainstay US exporters. Ahead of December US government trade data out this month, November 2016’s strong export volume for met coal is expected to be a precursor for a rise in volumes in a reaction to stronger global prices in Q4 2016, sources said at an industry event in Miami. “The first half should be strong for exports, the second half is uncertain,” said an industry source close to the US ports. –CB Report

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Gujranwala Deputy Director reshuffles 7 staff members Tuesday February 7, 2017

National Sialkot customs collects Rs17.82 million in seven months SIALKOT

SALeeM AwAn SHeikHu www.customsbulletin.com

SIALKOT: Deputy Director Customs Intelligence and Investigation Gujranwala Ali Zeb Khan reshuffled 7 staff members and assigned new duties. The reshuffled staff includes three inspectors and four sepoys.

According to details, deputy director issued transfer orders of Inspector Mian Muhammad Yousaf from Narowal check post to Kamoke check post, Inspector Majid Raza from Kamoke check post to Rahwali chek post and Inspector Saad Iqbal Sidhu from Rahwali check post to Wazirabad check post.

Ali Zeb Khan also issued transfer notice of four sepoys.

Additional collector Beelam issues notice to alleged vehicle smuggler C

FAISALABAD

iQRA SHeHZADi

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he Model Customs Collectorate collected Rs17.82 million in head of customs duty during first seven months (July 2016 to January 25, 2017) of financial year (FY) 2016-17. Reportedly, the MCC has already been surpassed its assigned revenue target for the current financial year which is Rs14.96 million.

Deputy Collector Waheed Anwar Abro told Customs Today that the Collectorate is showing outstanding performance and it is due to the tireless and efficient performance of the officials that the Collectorate has already surpassed its assigned revenue target. He denied the rumors about advance receiving of the customs duty adding that Sialkot station has its own reputation among all the Collectorate in the country and it is due to quality work and keen interest of not only officials but also of the rest of the staff.

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LHc suspends Rs1.25b notice served on wateen telecom he Lahore High Court (LHC) has suspended Rs1.25billion sales tax notice to Wateen Telecom.

The court adjourned the hearing till February 2017. Justice Abid Aziz Shiekh heard the case in which counsel for appellant company argued that the Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) is not authorized to collect tax from Wateen Telecom.

The Punjab Revenue Authority has surpassed its authority. Counsel for appellant pleaded with the court to declare null and void the sales tax notice issued to the Wateen Telecom. After hearing of arguments, the court has suspended the tax notice served on the Wateen Telecom till further order.

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ustoms Adjudication Additional Collector Beelam-urRamzan has issued a show cause notice to a suspect in a nonduty paid used Toyota Land Cruiser case involving Rs1.311 million.

As per the details, Faisalabad Customs Intelligence and Investigation following information impounded a used Toyota Land Cruiser bearing Registration No.LHH – 7904 near Sargodha Road.

The team asked the driver of the vehicle named as Muhammad Qaleem Raza to show documents regarding legal import of the vehicle but he could not produce the same.

Therefore, the ofRicials impounded the vehicle under the customs laws and forwarded the case to

the Customs Adjudication for further legal action.

Now, Additional Collector Beelam-ur-Ramzan issued notice to the accused person on the violation of Section 10-A 89(1) and 156(1) of

the Customs Act, 1969. However, the adjudication has directed the accused to Rile a reply on the next date of hearing i.e. 10 , 03 , 2017 .The seizing agency has also been directed to Rile a reply in the case. The

adjudication authority also directed Customs Intelligence Deputy Director Muhammad Riaz Hussain to attend the hearing on schedule date along with relevant record.

Meanwhile, Customs Adjudication Additional Collector Beelamur-Ramzan has issued Order-inOriginal (ONO) against the accused person named as Fahid Yaqoob and ordered to seize the smuggled vehicle.

As per the details, Anti-Smuggling Organization (ASO) team impounded a non-duty Toyota Premio motor car bearing registration number NW- 975 Islamabad. The team asked the driver identiRied himself as Fahid Yaqoob to produce legal customs-duty paid documents but he was failed to produce the same.

On this the Customs authorities impounded the vehicles.

customs collects Rs2303.56m cD from Sep-Jan

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ISLAMABAD

tARiQ DeRYA

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he Model Customs Collectorate collected Rs2303.56million customs duty (CD) from September to January of Financial Year (FY) 210617. Additional Deputy Collector Khawaja Khurram Naeem told Customs Today that the impact of Electronic Import Form (EIF) was overstated and it has not negatively affected the revenue collection. He said that during January the collectorate generated Rs538.00 million customs duty (CD) whereas the revenue of Rs486.66 million was collected under the head of CD during December FY16-17.

He said the collectorate collected Rs436.81million customs duty during November, Rs411.57million during October and Rs430.52million during September. Khawaja Khurram added that during the last Financial Year FY2015-16 the collectorate generated customs duty (CD) of

Rs3587.73million during the same period. The collectorate earned revenue of Rs427.34million dur-

ing January, Rs2012.53 million during December, Rs369.91million during November, Rs378.56

million during October and Rs399.39million during September of Financial year 2015-16.

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Faisalabad FIA arrests two notorious human traffickers FAISALABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Faisalabad has arrested two notorious human traffickers from different areas of the city.

Sources told Customs Today that the Anti-Human Trafficking Cell of the agency raided different areas of Faisalabad division and arrested one human trafficker named Husain son of Muhammad Sarwar who extorted Rs300000 from complainant for sending him to Malaysia but he failed to deliver.

Another human trafficker namely Muhammad Afzal Khan son of Amir Khan has been arrested for extorting Rs250000 from a person for sending him to Dubai on employment visa but he also failed.

SHc adjourns hearing of case filed

by M/s SSgc Lpg pvt Limited till feb KARACHI

M BiLAL

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he Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the tax department not to pass final order till next date of hearing on a constitutional petition filed by M/s SSGC LPG (Private) Limited against impugned show cause notice issued by the tax department and seeking exemption from withholding tax.

During the hearing of petition, a twomember bench, headed by Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi directed the petitioner to submit response to the show cause notice and assist this court on maintainability of the instant petition on the next date of hearing. The court

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also issued notices to the tax authorities and deputy attorney general for February 2017. Earlier, counsel for the petitioner stated that petitioner is engaged in the sourcing, processing, marketing, packaging and supply of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and provision of terminal and storage services and it has been issued a certificate by Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) and tax department has on in business of SRO 586 (1)/1991, in past issued exemption certificate to the petitioner from withholding tax on the supply of LPG under section 153 read with section 159 of the ordinance. According to the petitioner, however, Additional Commissioner Inland Revenue Audit Range-B, Zone-III issued a notice under section 122 (9) read/with section 122 (5A) of the ordinance with a mala fide intention, whereby it has shown its intention to tax the income earned by the petitioner through supply of LPG under the final tax regime and not under the normal tax regime.

National

govt should facilitate traders to boost taxation: Ac Ltu Rehan Safder T

LAHORE

MuHAMMAD nAwAZ www.customsbulletin.com

he government should facilitate traders to increase taxation. If traders will earn more, they will pay more taxes. To strengthen national economy, the government should also facilitate the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) with more staff and all other facilities required for the tax collection.

This was stated by Rehan Safder, Additional Commissioner, Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU), Zone-IV, Lahore, while giving an interview to Customs Today.

Talking about the jurisdiction, Rehan said there are several types of cases which fall under his department’s jurisdiction. He said he collects revenue from steel sector’s 12 units. He also collects taxes from two sugar mills, educational institutions, pipe manufacturing industry and hospitals. Additional Commissioner said Zone-IV collects more taxes from the steel industry from where he also collects monthly Sales Tax. He collects taxes from the big steel units like Mughal Steel, New Shalimar, Tayyab Brothers, SuRi Steel, Punjab Con-cast Steel Limited, T.A

Corporation and the other unnamed one. Zone-IV has collected one billion in December from which Rs202million is from Sales Tax. Steel sector contributes 50 to 60 percent to the zone, he said. Rehan said he performs both functions of audit and enforcement of taxpayers. Talking about audit process, he added that there are two basic ways of selection of cases for audit; one is selec-

Tuesday February 7, 2017

tion by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and the second one is selection by the zonal commissioner. Under the Section 122 (5), the additional commissioner and ofRicer Inland Revenue (IR) can select cases for audit. “During the audit procedure, if any discrepancy is found, the ofRicer concerned checks taxpayers’ record and orders payment of their complete tax liability”, he said.

fBR gives wHt exemption on equipment import for oLtp ISLAMABAD

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

he Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has exempted equipment imported for rail-based mass transit projects under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) from withholding tax. The FBR, through SRO 44(I)/2017, exempted withholding tax on import of equipment to be furnished or installed for rail-based mass transit projects in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta under the CPEC. The board said the decision was, “in pursuant of the Economic Coordination Committee’s approval on January 6.”The rate of tax, under section 152 in the case of M/s CR-NORINCO JV (Chinese contractor) as recipient, on payments arising out of commercial contract agreement signed with the government of Punjab for installation of electrical and mechanical (E&M) equipment for construction of the Lahore Orange Line Metro Train Project, shall be 6 percent of the gross amount of payment. The provision of section 148 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 shall not apply on import of equipment to be furnished or installed for railbased mass transit projects in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta under the CPEC, the FBR added.

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Dg Valuation issues value of instant water gas heaters

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KARACHI

wAQAR AHMeD AnSARi www.customsbulletin.com

he Directorate General of Customs Valuation issued the reference values for Instant Water Gas Heater and Cameras.

The Directorate General has initiated an exercise to develop database values for different items wherein it has been observed that declarations are of wide range and do not correctly reRlect values of the items as traded in the international market. During the scrutiny of previous clearance data, it was been observed that Instant Water Gas Heater falling under PCT heading

8419.1100 are being assessed at different values and certain transactions are on very low side.

The Directorate General, after carefully examining the clearance data, also conducted market inquiries to verify the authenticity of declarations. Online prices were also obtained to corroborate the Rindings of the market surveys. The Directorate found that the customs values of Instant Water Gas Heater are as Instant Gas Water Heater Super Asia and NASGAS brand China origin US$3.50 per liter and Instant Gas Water Heater Low End brand China origin US$2.75 per liter.

The Directorate General initiated another exercise to develop database

values for different items wherein has been observed that declarations are of wide range and do not correctly reRlect values of the items as traded in the international market.

During the scrutiny of previous clearance data, it has been observed that Cameras falling under PCT heading 8525.8040 are being assessed at different values and certain transactions are on very low side. The Directorate General, after carefully examining the clearance data, also conducted market inquiries to verify the authenticity of declarations. Online prices were also obtained to corroborate the Rindings of the market surveys. The Directorate found that the customs values of Cameras are as

Canon brand Camera EOS6D Japan origin US$300 per piece, Canon brand Camera E070D Japan origin US$230 per piece, Nikon brand Camera D5500 Thailand origin US$175 per piece, Canon brand Camera E0S750D Japan origin US$165 per piece, Canon brand Camera 5Ds body Japan origin US$1481 per piece, Canon brand Camera EQS80P Body Japan origin US$427 per piece, Canon brand Camera EOS70P Body Thailand origin US$355 per piece, Canon brand Camera EOS700D Japan origin US$184 per piece, Nikon D700 kit. 18.105mm Japan US$296 per piece and Nikon 5300 18.140mm Japan origin US$309 per piece.

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Thai airlines raise domestic fares Tuesday February 7, 2017

World

BANGKOK: Thailand’s low-cost airlines are increasing fares on domestic routes in a respond to a massive increase in excise tax on jet fuel that came into effect last week.

The government increased the fuel tax on all domestic flights from 20 satang to THB4 per litre, claiming it was overdue, while bringing the tax more inline with the THB6 a litre tax on diesel fuel. Nok Air, Thai Lion Air and Thai AirAsia issued statements, Tuesday, saying they would raise fares on domestic routes to reflect the “real cost increase by THB150 per sector”. It will increase roundtrip fares by THB300. Thai AirAsia and Thai Lion Air announced the same increase, effective 1 February (Air Asia) and 6 February (Lion Air). At press time, Bangkok Airways and Thai Smile had not announced fare increases.

police nab tokyo man in smuggling of stimulant drugs

TOKYO

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

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olice have arrested a Tokyo man for allegedly smuggling stimulant drugs concealed

Royal Dutch Shell’s key earnings fall 44% oyal Dutch Shell reported worse than expected fourth-quarter results after booking $500m of impairments but the Anglo-Dutch group said it was making progress towards recovery from a two-year downturn. Earnings on a current cost of supply basis, the measure most closely watched by investors, fell 44 per cent to $1.03bn, from $1.84bn in the same period last year. Excluding exceptional items, earnings were up 14 per cent at $1.8bn, from $1.6bn a year ago. However, this was well below analysts’consensus forecast for $2.79bn. Shell said the $500m impairment mostly related to the impact of a weakening Australian dollar on a deferred tax position. The results will disappoint investors who hoped for a stronger show of momentum on the back of higher oil prices and continues the choppy performance by Shell since its $50bn takeover of BG Group completed last year. –CB Report

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in packages of ginseng into Japan from Korea, reports Nippon News Network. In October of last year, Ryu Murata, 24, was alleged to have been carrying one kilogram of kakuseizai, or stimulant drugs, concealed inside four packages of dried ginseng upon his arrival at Fukuoka City via highspeed ferry from the Port of Busan.

The contraband has a street value of 74 million yen. Murata has declined to comment on the allegations. Police are now investigating how Murata obtained the drugs.

Meanwhile, Excise tax collections from tobacco products fell by 9 percent to P91.6 billion in 2016 from P99.5 billion in 2015 despite the annual increase in excise tax rates, due in part to the proliferation of fake cigarettes and tax stamps, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said. Nestor Valeroso, BIR deputy commissioner, said other reasons for the decline could be the implementation of the Graphic Health Warning (GHW) Law and lower removals. “The GHW may be one of the causes. I have to validate the Rigures, this is just tentative. Plus, there’s the fake stamps that we discovered, as well as smuggled cigarettes,” Valeroso said. He said there is still no estimate on the illicit market and leakages. “The BIR is trying to prevent or reduce leakages by doing undercover surveillance activities, and we have done some strategic planning,”Valeroso said.

South Africa, eu spar over chicken meat imports

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African poultry industry workers on Wednesday marched to the European Union’s headquarters in Pretoria, accusing the EU of dumping cheap chicken in the country. The EU says it is not the cause of the industry’s woes. About 500 workers, former workers and company managers from the South African poultry sector took part in the protest, warning that the local poultry sector was on the brink of collapse due to the dumping of cheap

chicken. The message on the banners was clear: “Organize or starve,” one read while another proclaimed “Dumping destroys SA jobs.” The South African Poultry Association (SAPA) is calling for a stop to the imports which it says have led to at least 5,000 jobs being lost. The country’s largest poultry producer Rainbow Chicken Limited (RCL)last month laid off 1,350 employees, that’s about 20 percent of its workforce, and is selling 15 of its 25 farms. –CB Report

customs, excise officials protest against gSt AMSTERDAM

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

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wo days before presentation of the Union Budget in the Parliament, officials of the Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax Departments today protested against the Goods and Service Tax alleging that decisions taken by the GST council were discriminatory.

Officials under the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) at Attari Integrated Check Post (ICP) and the Customs and Excise Department here wore black bands to mark today’s Martyrdom Day of the Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi as black day.

They alleged that the Centre government had ignored interests of the department while taking certain decisions.

Custom officials preferring not

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fuel tax may hurt tourism eRlecting industry concerns, the boss of Thai AirAsia (TAA) yesterday warned that ticket prices inRlated by the jump in excise tax on jet fuel will have a detrimental effect on domestic tourism. TAA chief executive Tassapon Bijleveld said passengers Rlying domestic Rlights are mostly of the leisure type and are price-sensitive.

“A 100- or 200-baht increase [in ticket price] will have a signiRicant impact on their travel decisions,” he said. “If the government really wants to promote tourism, they have to seriously look at the Mr Tassapon was responding to Jan 25’s

Metal output sinks 8 percent in 2016

M MANILA

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

GB said metal mineral production dropped eight percent to P100.56 billion last year from 2015’s P109.84 billion, blaming “[p]oor base metal price, a string of mine suspension and nonoperation due to unfavorable

weather conditions” for the sector’s “lackluster performance.”

Increases in gold and silver production, the agency noted, were not able to make up for declines in output of copper and nickel. Gold continued to contribute the biggest chunk at P44.85 billion, or 44% of the total.

Nickel direct shipping ore and mixed nickel-cobalt sulRide took the second spot with 37% at P36.84 billion, fol-

to be named said around 70,000 staff of the department across the country today wore black bands in order to express their resentment while several other employees were on fast during working hours to restore dignity and pride of the service. Associations associated with the CBEC alleged that certain decisions in the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Bill were heavily tilted towards the states.

They said the Bill should be passed and implemented in a rational and transparent manner.

They alleged that the basic structure of the scheme was being compromised and would lead to utter chaos proving detrimental to revenue, industry, trade and commerce in general. Officials from the CBEC should have proper representation as secretary level officials could not gauge long term impacts of certain decisions taken by the GST council, they added. They said, “This has led to discontentment in the cadre.”

lowed by copper with 18% or P17.76 billion. The remaining one percent or P1.11 billion came from the consolidated output of silver, chromite and iron ore. “The P10.88-billion gain in the combined production value of gold and silver in 2016 due to the growth in mine production coupled with improved metal price of gold and silver was not sufRicient to offset the substantial P16-billion decline in

rise in the excise tax on jet fuel from 20 satang a litre to 4.89 baht. The increase has led Thai-registered airlines to pass on the burden to Rlyers, at 150 baht per Rlight leg on four major low-cost carriers and 200 baht on full-service airline Bangkok Airways starting from. Mr Tassapon pointed out that a TAA air ticket on a domestic route, averaging 1,250 baht per leg, is now comparable to the fare for a Rlight to Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar or Vietnam. According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, domestic tourists last year increased by 4% from the previous year to 145 million. –CB Report

the production value of copper and nickel,” MGB noted. World prices of gold and silver respectively increased by 17% $1,360.85 per troy ounce (/oz t) from $1,163.59/oz t and by 19% to $18.63/oz t from $15.72/oz t.

Copper and nickel recorded respective declines of three percent to $2.40 per pound (/lb) from $2.48/lb and of 11% to $4.75/lb from $5.34/lb, MGB reported further.

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Japan’s robust auto imports counter claims of closed market

World Customs

TOKYO: Foreign vehicles now hold a record share of the Japanese auto market even as U.S. President Donald Trump assails what he sees as unfair access hurdles, a sign that the struggles of some car companies have more to do with appeal than legal barriers.

Audi Japan unveiled Thursday a revamped version of the German automaker’s best-selling A3 compact line, now on sale at dealers nationwide. Driver assistance features come standard on the new models, while prices at the bottom end of the line have been trimmed 100,000 yen ($875) to less than 3 million yen.

Audi sold 28,502 vehicles in Japan in 2016, double the figure from a decade ago.

iran auto imports grow 54% over he Statistical Center of Iran (SCI) has released the latest figures on auto imports for the first ten months of the Iranian year (March 20, 2016-January 19). It said the sector registered a 54% year-on-year increase during the period with 45,298 cars imported at a total cost of $1.16 billion (632 trillion rials). The SCI data was carried by the local automotive website Asre Khodro Tuesday. It said 24,901cars with an engine capacity of 1.5 liters to 2 liters were imported along with 20,397 sedans with engines from 2 liters to 2.5 liters. The numbers are an indication of the growing interest in cars with smaller engine capacity and that the Rouhani administration’s ban on engines larger than 2.5 liters is seemingly producing the desired results. Names of countries from which the vehicles were imported were not reported by the SCI. However, according to a previous report published in January on the auto import during the first nine months of the year. –CB Report

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uk service sector growth ‘slows’ rowth in the UK’s dominant service sector slowed last month, according to a closely watched survey, while price pressures “remained intense”. The Markit/CIPS purchasing managers’ index (PMI) recorded its first slowdown in the services sector for four months. The index fell to 54.5 in January from the previous month’s reading of 56.2.

However, a reading above 50 still indicates the sector is expanding, and Markit said the economy was on track for a “buoyant” start to 2017. Similar surveys from Markit/CIPS released earlier in the week suggested a slight slowdown in activity in both the manufacturing and construction sectors.

But Markit said the surveys together suggested the UK economy would grow by a “robust” 0.5% in the first quarter of the year. –CB Report

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philippines customs seizes indian onion worth $300,000

MANILA

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

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he Bureau of Customs (BOC) seized fresh (red) Indian onions worth millions of pesos in an operation in Manila. The red onions totaled around P15 million worth of imported fresh red Indian onions.

Reportedly, the goods were contained in eleven 40-footer container-vans lodged for processing at the Manila International Container Port (MICP). In a statement from the BOC, eight out of the 11 vans were consigned to Mheriban Sales Corp.

The other three CVs were for Malaya Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MMPC).

Neither of them had valid import permits from the Bureau of Plant and Industry (BPI).

“Our CIIS agents inquired at the Department of Agriculture (DA) to ask about its policy covering agricultural importation of onion products and it appears that the importers have no corresponding import permits at the moment,” Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon said in the statement. Meanwhile, The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is implementing a mass promotion of its roughly 4,000 employees for the Rirst time in decades as Customs commissioner Nicanor Faeldon recognizes the work of the BOC staff. Promoting employees would

also pave the way for entry-level vacancies that would allow BOC to hire new people in the bureau as part of its package of sweeping reforms, its spokesperson told The STAR in an interview. “We held an (assessment) exam last Sunday, so this is almost mass promotion. Almost everybody will be promoted. After this we can hire new people and if you introduce fresh blood, reforms would be easier,” said BOC spokesperson Ret. Col. Neil Estrella. Estrella said for the past 20 years, promotions among BOC employees have not been as often as in other government agencies because the BOC commissioners were focused on other priority reforms such as revenue collections and anti-smuggling efforts, among others.

Tuesday February 7, 2017

wind earnings up 93percent in 2016 at Dong ong Energy’s wind business has outranked the utility’s earnings from oil and gas for the first time, with pre-tax earnings (Ebitda) of DKK 11.9bn (€1.6bn) for its last financial year, almost double the previous year’s total. Germany’s Gode Wind projects are now contributing to Dong’s wind earnings. Germany’s Gode Wind projects are now contributing to Dong’s wind earnings.

The rise in wind’s earnings is attributed to the commissioning of the 258MW Burbo Bank Extension in the UK’s Irish Sea, and completion of the 582MW Gode Wind 1 & 2 sites in Germany, after a delay in the transmission connection. “Ebitda for 2017 is expected to be split more or less evenly between wind farm operations and construction contracts and divestment gains,” stated the company’s financial report. Dong expects to complete a 50% divestment in the 660MW Walney Extension project in 2017. “From 2021 to 2025, it is our ambition to continue the value creating expansion and to reach an installed capacity of 11-12GW by the end of 2025,” said Dong CEO Henrik Poulsen. For the first time, Dong reported its oil and gas assets as discontinuing operations, ahead of a planned sell-off of its fossil fuel assets. The firm also announced plans to remove all coal-based generation from its portfolio by 2023. –CB Report

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Russia to ban beef imports from new Zealand

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MOSCOW

cuStoMS BuLLetin RepoRt www.customsbulletin.com

ussia plans to temporarily ban imports of beef and beef products from New Zealand from February 6 after Rinding the feed additive ractopamine in some samples, Russia’s agriculture safety watchdog said in a statement on Thursday. The watchdog, known as Rosselkhoznadzor in Russian, said it was also considering banning Rish imports from New Zealand due to traces of

mercury in some supplies. Ractopamine, which is used to promote muscle growth, is prohibited for use in beef cattle in New Zealand, which promotes its reputation as a safe, natural producer in marketing its food products – particularly dairy – overseas. “New Zealand did not receive prior notiRication and ofRicials are seeking further clariRication about the announcement,” a spokesman for the PaciRic nation’s Ministry for Primary Industries said in an email. The head of New Zealand’s meat industry body Tim

Ritchie, told local media the country ran a testing system for ractopamine in sheep and cattle, and that traces of the additive had never been found.

New Zealand is not covered by a wider ban on most Western food imports which Moscow introduced in 2014 in retaliation for Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its role in the Ukraine crisis. The country’s exported less than NZ$10 million ($7.3 million) of beef to Russian in 2016, out of NZ$3 billion in beef exports globally. “New Zealand food standards are among the highest in

the world and we are committed to producing high quality safe meat for domestic and overseas consumers,” the Ministry for Primary Industries said. Russia has previously limited imports in trade disputes. It has banned meat supplies from other countries due to traces of ractopamine, which is banned in several countries, including Russia and China. Separately, the head of Russia’s watchdog Sergei Dankvert plans to meet with an ofRicial from Brazil’s Agricultural Protection Unit Luis Eduardo PaciRici Rangel in Moscow on Feb. 3.

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FIA arrests two fraudsters and human trafficker Tuesday February 7, 2017

Lahore

LAHORE: The Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) arrested two accused fraudsters on Friday after conducting raids on different parts of Punjab.

According to FIA authorities, a District Coordinator Riba Free Technology Zahid Iqbal was arrested on the charge of cheating people by taking money from them on the false promise of giving highpost government and private sector jobs. On the same charge, another man was held from Toba Tek Singh who committed fraud of Rs885000.

Yet in another action, a human smuggler named Tanveer was arrested from a hotel in Faisalabad.

Four Pakistani passports and a scanned Canadian visa sticker were also recovered from him.

nAB recoveres Rs2b; filed 103 corruption references in 2016’

Lahore High court disposes of bails of 13 drug smugglers

LAHORE

LAHORE

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MuHAMMAD nAwAZ www.customsbulletin.com

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ahore High Court (LHC) has disposed of bails of 13 drug smugglers. Under the supervision of Justice Waqas Rauf Mirza two members bench heard the bails applications of appellant.

The appellant Haq Nawaz, Waqas, Muhammad Idrees, Ijaz Yousaf, Jamshaid, Shahid, Aftab, Shafiqe, Naveed and others was plead before the court for bail in drug smuggling case.

The counsels of appellant argued before the court that the police had not eye witness and registered fake cases of drug smuggling against the appellant. The counsels prayed before the court for bails of the appellant.

SAARc chamber delegation reaches Lahore through wagah high level delegation from South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Chamber reached Lahore via Wagah border to attend its 68th executive committee meeting. Customs officials deputed at Wagah border welcomed the guests with other members of different chambers of Pakistan.

Talking to the media at Wagah border, SAARC CCI vice president Iftikhar Ali Malik said that this is the first time that the executive committee meeting is taking place in Lahore to strengthen the objective of SAARC. He said that the business community advocates regional economic integration to address major challenges including job creation and poverty. –M Imran Mehar

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Deputy Proctor General Rana Shafiqe and Nuzhat Bashir presented the record of cases and argued that the cases of drug smuggling are registered in the different districts of Lahore, Gujranwala and others.

Adding more that these accused are record holders and huge quantity of illegal drugs recovered from him. After hearing the arguments Lahore High Court (LHC) has dispose of bails of the drug smugglers.

It is pertaining to mentioned here that Lahore High Court (LHC) was disposed of bails of 15 drug smugglers names Awais Ashraf, Zafar Iqbal, Riasat Saeed Khan, Tanveer Ahmed, Muhammad Khalid, Inam Ullah, Tariq Ali, Zohaib Bashir and other on Wednesday. During the hearing the Deputy proctor General Rana Shafiqe and Nuzhat Bashir presented the record of cases.

M iMRAn MeHAR

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amar Zaman Chaudhry, Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB), visited the NAB Lahore Regional Bureau to review its performance on the basis of annual inspection conducted by Chairman’s Inspection & Monitoring Team (CI&MT) at NAB Lahore Bureau on Friday.

NAB Chairman’s Inspection & Monitoring Team (CI&MT) was deputed to conduct an annual inspection of NAB Lahore Regional Bureau for the year 2015. The annual inspection was carried out to review and evaluate the performance of NAB Lahore Bureau on the basis of newly introduced Partly QuantiRied Grading System (PQGS).

Senior Member, Chairman’s Inspection and Monitoring Team

Anti narcotics force arrests five accused, recovered narcotics

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he Anti Narcotics Force (ANF) arrested five accused and recovered huge quantity of narcotics in different operations. According to details, ANF recovered six kilogram Hashish from a drug carrier who was identified as Ahmed Ali Khan a resident of Bannu. In another operation, ANF arrested Muhammad Ali a resident of Narowal at Sialkot International Airport and recovered 650 gram Heroin concealed inside his clothes. The ANF recov-

ered 140 gram Hashish from Muhammad Fahad as well as a drug peddler identified as Faheem Rehman in a raid near University of Engineering and Technology Lahore and recovered 120 gram Hashish. The ANF sources said that ANF nabbed a drug dealer who was identified as Muhammad Din and recovered 150 grams of Hashish from his possession. Reportedly, he was involved in supplying drugs to the students of educational institutes. –M Imran Mehar

(CI&MT) along with his own team, conducted the said annual inspection for the year 2015. He gave a detailed brieRing to Chairman NAB about the annual inspection done

by CI&MT and highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of NAB Lahore Regional Bureau.

He informed the media that on

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cAt adjourns eight cases in next dates he Customs Appellate Tribunal division bench-II comprising Judicial Member Omer Arshad Hakeem and Technical Member Imran Tariq heard eight cases and adjourned all the cases until the next date of hearing.

The Customs Tribunal adjourned eight cases, included Muhammad Asghur versus Lahore Customs, Faisalabad Customs versus Safar Khan Customs, Gogha Shahbaz versus Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation Faisalabad, Multan Customs versus Abdul Rauf.

On Wednesday, the tribunal heard cases, including Muhammad Rizwan

customs court hears 11 important cases

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LAHORE

M iMRAn MeHAR

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he Special Court of Customs Taxation and Anti-Smuggling heard 11 important cases on Saturday and adjourned the all until the next hearing.

On Saturday, a total 11 cases of different types were scheduled for

hearing, including indictment against the accused in a mobile smuggling case.

The cases, including tax evasion, customs, smuggling and narcotics, were scheduled for the day.

A case of Faheem in mobile smuggling was also scheduled for the hearing in which the court recorded statements of the parties and adjourned it for the next week.

the directions of Qamar Zaman Chaudhry, Chairman NAB Partly QuantiRied Grading System (PQGS) had been devised in 2014. Under this Partly QuantiRied Grading System (PQGS), the performance of all NAB’s Regional Bureaus is being conducted since 2014 based on the uniform criteria.

The court also proceeded on statements and witnesses on four different cases on the day. The cases of Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot and Jhelum were scheduled for the day.

Meanwhile, The National Accountability Bauer Court has issued non-bail-able arrest warrants of two Customs ofRicers on Thursday.

According to details available to Customs Today that two ofRicials ap-

versus Multan Customs, six star sports versus Sambrial Customs, Muhammad Aqeel Yaqoob versus Multan Directorate Of Intelligence And Investigation and Farhad Ali versus directorate of Multan Intelligence and Investigation. In all cases, the representatives of the appellant and respondents appeared before the court and argued in favour of their respective parties. After hearing arguments from both parties, the Customs Appellate Tribunal adjourned the case till next date of hearing. Customs Appellate Tribunal bench-I not heard any case because no any case was Rixed for hearing in the bench-I. –Muhammad Nawaz

pointed at Wagha Land Freight Unit were allegedly involved in misconduct and taking bribe from importers of pan leaves. Sources said that both of the ofRicers have made huge loss to the national kitty in the wake of taxes and duties evasion by taking bribery.

NAB consul told the court that customs ofRicials were unfair to their duties.

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Port of Vancouver makes Marler its permanent chief WASHINGTON: The Port of Vancouver USA has a new leader. Actually, the new boss is, in a way, the old boss, at least for the last few months. Julianna Marler will fill the permanent CEO/executive director role after serving as interim leader since May. The Port’s Board of Commissioners voted 2-1 to hire her full-time. Also in the running were Edward Galligan, the Port of Olympia’s executive director, and former Seattle Economic Development Council leader Arthur Scheunemann. “We had three highly qualified candidates, and that made this a hard decision,” said commission President Brian Wolfe, in a release. “I believe Julianna is best suited to take us forward and realize the vision this port has for connecting with the community and bringing economic benefit to our region.”

indonesia integrating ports to attract transshipments ndonesia is taking several new measures to improve the economics and efficiency of its maritime logistics sector.

Jakarta is implementing a plan to enable the country’s ports to capture a larger share of transshipment business related to domestic cargo. It is also introducing a series of regulatory changes to support more investment and private sector participation in maritime logistics and reduce cargo dwell times at ports throughout the archipelago. An agreement to jointly develop a new $3 billion deep-sea port with Japan has also been signed. The transport ministry said it is working with the four dominant state-owned port operators on a plan to support the implementation of a hub and spoke system for domestic cargo distribution centered on Tanjung Priok as a primary domestic and interna-

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tional hub port. The“integrated chain port”plan includes development of an information technology management system and changes to regulation that the administration said will help bring home a larger share oftransshipment business that originates domestically. Indonesia has more than 10,000 inhabited islands spread over an area as wide as the United States. Much of the export cargo handled by secondary ports such as Kuala Tanjung in North Sumatra, Bitung in North Sulawesi, Makassar in South Sulawesi, Sorong in West Papua, and Tanjung Perak is currently transshipped via Singapore. An improved maritime logistics management system that can efficiently integrate and manage cargo flows from different island sources is regarded by the administration of President Joko Widodo as central to bring down logistics costs that the World Bank. –CB Report

Ports & Shipping

port of catoosa ships 80 million tons of cargo TEHRAN

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otal barge tonnage for the Tulsa Port of Catoosa for 2016 was 2,259,346, pushing the cumulative total of tons since the Port opened in 1971 to 79.97 million tons. This means that in the Rirst few weeks of 2017, the Port will reach the milestone of 80 million total tons shipped. This capstone achievement ends a year that also saw the Port move and expand its Maritime Education Center and complete a $12 million renovation to its main dock and bridge crane. In December 2016, the total barge tonnage for the Tulsa Port of Catoosa was 243,260 tons, which marks a 65 percent increase over usage from the same period last year. In addition, total barge tonnage for the entirety of 2016 was 2,259,346 tons, a 46 percent increase over 2015. The Port of Catoosa also made signiRicant moves and renovations during 2016.

In May, the City of Tulsa-Rogers County Port Authority celebrated the completion of the port’s Main Dock

Renovation Project.

The project took more than two years to construct and $12 million dollars in investment. The renovations completely replaced the surface of the 45-year-old dock and constructed more than 6,000 feet of new railroad. The port also moved and expanded its Maritime Education Center, adding more hands-on displays, and expanded the Port education reach throughout the state.

During 2016, the Port’s Maritime Education Program reached more than 12,000 people.

At the May 10 Main Dock Dedication event former Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett said, “With this investment, the port is now ready to serve Oklahoma’s seacoast for another 45 years.

Our port truly has evolved into a world-class, multi-modal transportation facility, insuring that we have the most optimum transportation rates for our business and industry.” In addition to the dock surface and new rail, the Port of Catoosa renovated the main dock’s 45-year-old, 200-ton bridge crane, bringing the crane up to today’s industry standards.

Tuesday February 7, 2017

Annual cargo volume at port of ipswich grows 13% rowth was driven by a 22% increase in cargo for export, with the total rising from just over 1m tonnes in 2015 to more than 1.25m. And the annual total, which marks the port’s best performance since 2010, has yet to reflect in full the benefit of investment by ABP last year in upgrading facilities and replacing equipment at Ipswich.

ABP, which in East Anglia also includes the ports of Lowestoft and King’s Lynn, invested around £5.4m in the Port of Ipswich during 2016, including a new £2.2m, 40,000sq ft bulk store which is due for completion in April. This will be used to meet the demands for additional agribulk storage, for which Ipswich is established as the UK’s most important export port. More than £1.6m was spent last year on new equipment including five cargo handling grabs, four forklift trucks and a new Mantsinen tracked mobile high capacity crane which is due for arrival at the port early next month. –CB Report

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port of oakland start warehouse construction P

WASHINGTON

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ort of Oakland ofRicials say they will begin work on about 750,000 square feet of warehouses this year. The project will allow the port to increase cargo volume coming through Oakland, much of it on the way to Asia as demand for agricultural products grows. It might also add more jobs to the existing 73,000 or so jobs connected to the port’s operations, which is run by 470 employees, be they dock workers or truck drivers. With these expansions, the refrigerated warehouse in particular will be able to Rit 36 train cars inside at one time, and the logistics complex will speed up “transloading:” Getting items on and off ships, trains and cars. This gives Oakland’s port greater capacity to Rit more inventory and to get products through the process more

quickly. The project includes raising the height of ship-to-shore cranes so bigger ships can load and unload, a refrigerated warehouse to bring more frozen and chilled meat products through per year, and a 440,000-square-foot Seaport Logistics Complex warehouse acting as a transfer point for cargo. The port expects construction of the new warehouse space will Rinish in 2018.

The port has seen a big increase in Asian demand for beef and pork products from the area, as well as other agricultural products like wine, nuts and fruits, port spokesperson Mike Zampa told the Business Times. The new warehouse will add an estimated 30,000 containers of chilled meat products to the current capacity. “It helps the supply chain move, and we think it’s going to give us the advantage over the next 20 years,” Zampa said.

“Other ports don’t have the land

available. As we grow cargo, we grow economic vitality for the city of Oakland.” In 2016, the Oakland port handled some 2.7 million 20-foot containers with all kinds of imported and exported goods. The port transports about $64 billion a year worth of goods, and Zampa says that is still on the rise since 2012. Meanwhile, Indonesia is taking several new measures to improve the economics and efRiciency of its maritime logistics sector. Jakarta is implementing a plan to enable the country’s ports to capture a larger share of transshipment business related to domestic cargo. It is also introducing a series of regulatory changes to support more investment and private sector participation in maritime logistics and reduce cargo dwell times at ports throughout the archipelago.

An agreement to jointly develop a new $3 billion deep-sea port with Japan has also been signed. The

transport ministry said it is working with the four dominant stateowned port operators on a plan to support the implementation of a hub and spoke system for domestic cargo distribution centered on Tanjung Priok as a primary domestic and international hub port. The “integrated chain port” plan includes development of an information technology management system and changes to regulation that the administration said will help bring home a larger share of transshipment business that originates domestically. Indonesia has more than 10,000 inhabited islands spread over an area as wide as the United States. Much of the export cargo handled by secondary ports such as Kuala Tanjung in North Sumatra, Bitung in North Sulawesi, Makassar in South Sulawesi, Sorong in West Papua, and Tanjung Perak is currently transshipped via Singapore.

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Customs confiscates smuggled phones at Turbat airport GWADAR: The Customs officials, posted at Turbat International Airport, have seized smuggled mobile phone sets and other foreign goods worth Rs 6 million. According to the Customs authorities, 548 costly handsets and other items were recovered from three suitcases during checking of cargo, at baggage hall of Turbat Airport. No one came forward to claim the ownership of the mobile phones, they added. A case under Customs laws has been lodged and efforts are being made to arrest culprits, the Customs authorities added.

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

CUSTOMS BULLETIN

Rs12 billion worth customs terminal to be set up at torkham: collector Qurban PESHAWAR nADiR kHAn

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modern customs terminal will be established on Torkham border at Rs12billion to provide all possible facilities to exporters and importers. Five billion dollar revenue target has been set from the import and export on the said border in near future.

These views were expressed by Collector Customs Peshawar Division Qurban Ali while addressing a representatives’ gathering of the Customs Clearing Agents Association held at Customs Colony, Landi Kotal, on Thursday.

Flanked by Assistant Collector, Torkham Customs Center, Fazal Shakoor, Collector Qurban Ali said that on the direction of the Federal Board of Revenue, some meetings have been convened with officials of Torkham Custom House and clearing agents community to get information of their problems and take necessary steps to further boost import and export on Torkham border.

He further said that setup of a modern custom dry port will be approved in the next week that will

not only increase trade but also provide job opportunities to the tribesmen. It is the desire of government to export Pakistani commodities to every local market of Afghanistan and central Asian

countries, Qurban stressed.

Qurban Ali disclosed that in the recent year, volume of seized goods has doubled as compared to last year. In replaying to the reservations of the customs clearing

agents regarding the political administration and National Logistic Cell (NLC), he assured them of solving their problems after discussing with the officials concerned.

Prior to the meeting, Chairman Customs Clearing Agents Association, Torkham, Mirajuddin Shinwari apprised the collector Peshawar of the problems being faced by the clearing agents.

fBR urged to remove anomalies in property valuation tables ISLAMABAD

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he federal government and Federal Board of Revenue have been urged to remove anomalies in the FBR-notiRied valuation tables, which are curbing momentum of real estate activities.

This demand was raised by Pakistan Real Estate Investment Forum (PREIF) President Shaban Elahi during a meeting of the

forum delegation with the National Assembly’s Standing Committee of Finance held in Islamabad to discuss the anomalies in FBRvaluation tables. Other members of the delegation included Naveed Bajwa, Javed Rehman, Abdul Wahid and Hassan Basharat.

Praising the government and the FBR for recent amendments in the Income Tax Ordinance, the PREIF president informed the lawmakers that in the post-amendment scenario, the real estate activities in the country were picking up and investor conRidence was rebuilding amongst overseas as well

as locals. He mentioned that property valuation tables for areas all over Pakistan were notiRied by FBR after consultation with the stakeholders however there were some exceptions where there were glaring valuation anomalies.

He highlighted the case of DHA City Karachi in addition to SITE area (Karachi), Anmol Co-Operative Society (Lahore), DHA Valley (Islamabad) and areas of Peshawar. Valuations in these areas are unnaturally high. This is increasing the transaction cost disproportionately and thereby discouraging investment in these areas. “While the overall

health of Pakistan real estate is improving but activities in the above highlighted areas are being held back due to the valuation anomalies.

Tax revenue from these areas can be increased substantially if these valuation anomalies are resolved,” Shaban Elahi argued. MNA Mian Abdul Mannan pointed out some areas in Faisalabad where the valuations were too high and needed to be corrected. MNA Muhammad Pervaiz Malik informed that some areas in Lahore also had valuation anomalies. Committee Chairman Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh shared that he was personally aware about anomalies

Published by M S Raza Off# 42, 3rd Flr Gull Plaza M.A Road Karachi, Printed by Dhoom Printing Building No RY/A, 11/6,11/7, Mashoor Mahal,off I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi

of SITE industrial area and supported PREIF’s stance. FBR member Inland Revenue Policy said on the occasion that real estate activity in the country is showing healthy signs after the amendments in the income tax ordinance. After detailed discussion, Qaiser Sheikh agreed to form a four-member subcommittee to look into the matter and Rind out the solution in consultation with all stakeholders. He announced that the sub-committee will consist of Mian Abdul Mannan, Sheikh Fayyaz Uddin, Makhdoom Syed Mustafa Mehmood and Mohammad Ali Rashid.