Islamabad: Pakistan Association of Large Steel Producers (PALSP) Secretary General Syed Wajid Bukhari recently requested the government to reduce the minimum tax rate imposed on all dealers and distributors associated with the country’s steel industry, a news source reported on January 31.
He expressed his views on the matter in a letter addressed to Federal Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar, Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Revenue Dr Waqar Masood Khan.
He stated that the current tax rate was seen to prevent both dealers and distributors from improving productivity in their business operations; urging the executive to revise the tax rate from the existing 1.5 percent to 0.25 percent.
‘The existing rate not only discourages steel manufactures from making future investments but also places additional burden on cash flows and disrupts supply chain of steel sector,’ the news source quoted the PALSP chief as saying. ‘It further discourages the stakeholders from documenting their business transactions with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR),’ he added.
He further stated that the proposed reduction would encourage unregistered retailers associated with the steel sector to become part of the documented economy, thereby generating additional revenue for the government.
