NBR withdraws duty on sugar

Staff Correspondent: National Board of Revenue (NBR) has withdrawn import duty on both raw and refined sugar so that consumers can get the sweetener at reduced rates.
The customs authority withdrew Tk 3,000 specific duty on import of raw and Tk 6,000 on refined sugar per ton with immediate effect, said a notification issued yesterday.
At the same time, the NBR also reduced regulatory duty on import of sugar to 25 per cent from 30 per cent, according to the notification.
The reduced import benefit, which comes following a proposal from the Commerce Ministry to bring down the prices of sugar from its current record level of up to Tk 120 per kilogram, will remain effective until May 30 this year.
After the reduction, the overall import cost of raw and refined sugar is expected to decline by Tk 6,500 and Tk 9,000 per ton respectively, according to an estimate of the NBR.