Suleman Chawla, Acting President, Federation of Pakistan Chambers and Industry (FPCCI) has urged the government to reduce customs duty on polyester filament yarn imports to 7 per cent from the current 11 per cent to enable textile manufacturers to use synthetic fibre during production. As per a report by the Tribune, Chawla urged the government to levy the same withholding tax at import stage for both manufacturers and commercial importers of polyester filament yarn.

Reduction in customs duty will encourage the industry to move away from cotton towards synthetic fibers, Saad Ziker, Analyst, Topline Securities explains. Chawla also emphasized on the abolition of 3 per cent value added tax at import stage on commercial importers of polyester filament yarn to make the raw material affordable for the textile industry. Ali Asif, Textile Analyst, Insight Securities termed duty reduction as an untimely decision as the government is trying to cut current account deficit. However, reduction in levies on synthetic fibre may boost textile exports in the long run, he added.