Govt imposes ban on import of luxury, non-essential items

By
Ayaz Akbar Yousafzai
|
Business Desk

May 18, 2022

A representational image of cars. — Reuters/File
A representational image of cars. — Reuters/File

  • PM Shehbaz Sharif imposes ban on import of non-essential items and luxury items to control dollar flight.
  • Ban has been imposed on import of luxury vehicles and other non-essential items, including cosmetics.
  • Sources in FBR say a proposal to increase regulatory duty on some luxury items has also been submitted.

Amid the continuous depreciation of the rupee and an unsettling economic crisis, the federal government on Wednesday decided to impose a ban on the import of non-essential and luxury items, Geo News reported.

According to sources, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has imposed a ban on the import of non-essential items that are not used by the common man. The decision is said to be important to control the dollar flight.

The sources said that the prime minister has banned the import of luxury vehicles and other non-essential items, including cosmetics, for which instructions have also been issued.

Read more: Swiss chocolates, French cheese, cars — cut imports to save $10b

They further added that the decision was taken by the premier due to the widening trade deficit and, after holding a consultative meeting with his coalition partners, it was decided that the government will take tough decisions to stabilise the economy.

The US dollar has witnessed a record surge during the past few weeks and was being traded today at over Rs200 in the open market, signalling a lack of confidence among the traders in the financial markets.

Which items will get expensive?

Meanwhile, according to sources in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), a proposal to increase duty on the following items has been submitted:

  • Regulatory duty on machinery will be up by 10% and home appliances by 50%
  • Power generation machinery regulations to go up by 30%
  • Steel products regulatory duty to go up by 10%
  • Duty on cars above 1,000cc to be up by 100% and 30% ACD
  • Regulatory duty on ceramics to be up by 40%
  • Duty on mobile phones to rise withing a range of Rs6,000 to Rs44,000 per unit