The custom authorities have issued four SROs here on Saturday to amend SRO 372(I)/2002 and SRO.358(I)/2002 facilitating both business community and general public.
The duty on 'palm stearin' has been reduced from 20 to 10 percent and concessional rate of duty would be applicable on four pharmaceutical raw materials including benzyl penicillin sodium/potassium, penicillin V potassium, polysaccharide iron complex and procaine penicillin G fortified sodium potassium.
According to SRO(I)/2004, the reduced duty of 5 percent on the import of locomotive and railway wagons in CKD or CBU condition will only be for Pakistan Railways.
This is subject to the condition that a written declaration is made on each 'Bill of Entry' declaring that the goods have been imported for use by the Pakistan Railways and will not be used otherwise.
This concession will encourage modernisation of railways and make it a cost-effective entity.
As per SRO (I)/2004, four new entries have been made in Table-1 of the SRO.372(I)/2002 to extend concessional rate of duty on the import of pharmaceutical raw materials.
The raw materials and packing materials specified in Table I of the SRO should be imported by a manufacturer, approved by the Director General, Health, under the Drugs Act, 1976 (XXXI of 1976), for manufacture of pharmaceutical products registered as drugs.
The ECC allowed Pakistan Steel Mills to import billets to increase their supply for manufacture of MS products. The decision has been taken to stabilise the prices of steel and to bridge the demand gap of 0.5 million tonnes steel billets.
The CBR has reduced custom duty on the import of billets for all importers providing a level playing field to public and private sector.
Another notification has reduced duty on palm stearin used in the manufacture of toilet soap subject to the same conditions as are applicable in case of oleo-chemical/stearic acid industry to make the local industry commercially viable.
These conditions require availability of in-house manufacturing facility and determination of requisite quantity of raw material on the basis of a survey to be conducted by the CBR.