Pakistan: APCMA calls for higher duty on Iranian cement imports

All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) is urging the government to put a 20 per cent import duty on Iranian cement, claiming that Iranian producers are "dumping" the building material in border markets.

"The local market in areas adjacent to the Iranian border and the coastal area of Balochistan are flooded with Iranian cement. Domestically produced cement is losing its markets, as it is unable to compete with Iranian offerings due to their duty and tax evasions," PCMA's Chairman, Mohammad Ali Taba, was quoted as saying by the Pakistani daily The Nation.

However, Iranian producers dismiss any dumping allegations. "Accusing Iranian exporters of dumping is old news," says the head of Cement Employers Association, Abdolreza Sheikhan. "Pakistani producers, who have higher energy costs, pressure their government every once in a while to expand their market reach."

According to Sheikhan, Iranian cement is primarily exported to Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan and the closest Pakistani market to the Iranian border. The city has no cement production and needs to import the industrial material, which consequently leads consumers to choose between Iranian offerings from just across the border, or local cement produced in that country’s northern provinces.

"Iranian cement is shipped at its finished price and not any lower," said Sheikhan, adding that the volume of Iranian shipments to Quetta is 'insignificant', which does not constitute dumping.