Star Business Report

Garment exporters yesterday demanded the continuation of the existing 0.5 per cent source tax for the next five years.

Apparel makers usually demand for source tax to be reduced to 0.25 per cent both before and after the budget is announced every year.

But this year they came up with the call to keep the tax the same for some time as Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in his budget speech on June 3 did not clearly mention any rate of source tax.

“The changes in source tax would hamper the business plan,” said Faruque Hassan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

“So, we demanded the continuation of the existing rate of 0.5 per cent source tax as the same source tax is better for long-term business planning,” he added.

Hassan was speaking at a press conference at the BGMEA’s office in Uttara, Dhaka to express the association’s budget reaction. The BGMEA chief also demanded 10 per cent cash incentive on export receipts of garments made from non-cotton fibre.