Edible oil traders on Tuesday proposed waiving the existing 5% import duty on soybean and palm oil and removing all value-added taxes (VAT) imposed on producers and traders.
The proposal was made in a meeting on Tuesday at the Ministry of Commerce, chaired by Trade Advisor Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, with edible oil trade leaders.
The most recent price adjustment for soybean oil and palm oil occurred on April 18, 2024.
Over the past few months, the global market has seen a continuous increase in the prices of soybean oil and palm oil.
Among these, the price of crude soybean oil increased by 14.8%, and RBD palm oil increased by 18.68 %.
To maintain stable prices locally, a proposal has been made to reduce the existing import duty to 5 percent and to withdraw all forms of taxes at the local production and trading stages.
The Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners Association has stated that such a waiver of taxes would help maintain the current price levels of edible oils without any increase.
Previously, the association had applied for a price adjustment with the Ministry of Commerce.
Regarding this proposal, the Ministry of Commerce has decided to forward a recommendation to the National Board of Revenue (NBR).
The NBR will then decide on the necessary actions.
The meeting was attended by the Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce, Mr Selim Uddin, Chairman of the NBR, Mr Abdur Rahman, Chairman of the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, Dr Moinul Khan and leaders of the edible oil traders.