Reassessment of raw materials import value demanded

The Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA) has urged the government to revisit the assessment value of three raw materials (cement clinker, granulated slag and gypsum) as their prices have fallen in international markets. They asked that the assessment value of cement clinker be reduced from US$60 to US$50t, granulated slag from US$30 to US$26t and gypsum from US$35 to $30t, the BCMA said in a letter to the Chattogram Custom House recently.

According to the National Board of Revenue (NBR), 24.15Mt of cement raw materials worth BDT138.78bn (US$1.277bn) were imported in the last fiscal year of 2022-23. About 22.47Mt of raw materials worth BDT107.60bn were purchased from the global markets in 2021-22. 

“We have to pay more taxes because the customs value of these products is higher than the import prices,” said Md Alamgir Kabir, president of the BCMA, in the letter, according to local media and added the country’s ongoing US dollar crisis, the complexity in opening letters of credit and the higher dollar rate have put producers in a tight spot. 

“Therefore, we have requested the National Board of Revenue and the Custom House to decide this effect as soon as possible.”

Mohammad Fyzur Rahman, the commissioner of the Chattogram Customs House, told the media that after receiving the letter, they collected data from international markets and found that the prices of the raw materials have come down. “Our assessment committee is seriously scrutinising the matter, and we will consider their proposal after analysing the risk of revenue evasion," he remarked.