Daily Times

Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (PVMA) has said the price of ghee and cooking oil will jump up to Rs18 per kilogram/litre from July 01 due to the recent budget measures.

In a statement on Sunday, PVMA Chairman Abdul Waheed said that prices of different brands will jump from Rs13 to Rs18 depending on their respective retail prices in the market. He said that local currency has lost Rs5 against US dollar while taxes to the tune of Rs18 per kg have been imposed in the budget; therefore, there will be no price reduction in the near future.

He said that the government is getting almost Rs90 in the form of taxes on per kilogram/litre of ghee and cooking oil which are highest in the region. He said that three percent additional sales tax has been imposed on the sale of ghee and cooking oil to unregistered buyers, while wholesalers and retailers will pay 0.1 percent and 0.5 percent withholding tax while input sales tax adjustment up to 90 percent has been allowed.

He demanded the government that input sales tax adjustment up to 100 percent should be allowed so that uniform tariff should be imposed on the whole industry, while withholding tax on wholesale and retail purchase should be reversed.

He demanded that additional sales tax should be abolished so that the prices of essential food items should remain stable as per the wishes of the government.

As per the speech of the finance minister on the floor of the house, taxes on the important food items have been abolished while the taxes on ghee and cooking oil industry have been kept intact which is a discriminatory decision, he said.