The Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PHMA) zonal chairman Faisal Mehboob Sheikh has welcomed the decision of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet to remove 5 percent Regulatory Duty on import of Cotton Yarn to facilitate the value-added apparel exports. PHMA zonal chairman hailed the efforts of Adviser to PM on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood to convince the government for accepting the genuine demand of the value-added apparel sector, expressing the hope that the Cabinet will give the final nod at the earliest for final ratification of the removal of RD. He observed the decision of the ECC to exempt cotton import from RD would, of course, deprive the government of a source of revenue and have certain budgetary implications but is timely and very much needed at this juncture. Faisal Mehboob Sheikh said that the apparel and home textile sectors in country’s local market was facing shortage of basic raw material, which might have led to a drastic decline in overall textile exports, hoping the situation will improve now.