Islamabad: The federal government is considering reductions in federal excise duty (FED) rates for the cement industry in its upcoming budget to provide relief to the sector amid falling sales — a news source reported.
The government is looking to reduce the FED from PKR 100 per bag to PKR 75. However, its impact on the revenue collection is under debate by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The government is also looking to decrease the additional general sales tax for unregistered businesses from 3% to either 2% or 1% for Budget 2020-21.
According to the details available, cement sales had been on the rise before the pandemic. However, according to the data shared by the All Pakistan Manufacturers Association (APCMA), a total of 3.52 million tons of cement was sold in April 2020, against the 4.6 million tons sold back in April 2019 — a decline of 24%.
Additionally, domestic consumption has also declined by 19%, from 4.04 million tons in April last year to 3.27 million tons during the same month this year.
