PARTHA PRATIM BHATTACHARJEE

The government is expected to increase the duty and taxes on 300 non-essential and luxury items such as SUVs, mobile phones and home appliances as it looks to rein in imports and ease the pressure on foreign currency reserves.

Vehicles over 3,000CC, washing machines, air conditioners, refrigerators, home decorations, tiles and toys are on the list drafted by the commerce ministry following Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s directive at a cabinet meeting on July 25 for necessary steps to discourage imports of luxury items.

The list, which also contains non-essential items that are manufactured locally, has been forwarded to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) for necessary action, The Daily Star has learnt from officials working on the matter.

The measure is likely to be discussed at a high-powered meeting today at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), convened to review the economic situation and challenges originating from the Ukraine war and the escalating inflation.

The issues of slashing fuel prices and distributing another one crore family card among poor households to enable them to purchase daily essentials at subsidised rates will also be discussed at the meeting, which will be chaired by Ahmad Kaikaus, principal secretary to the PM.

The secretaries of ministries of commerce, power and energy, disaster management, agriculture and finance as well as for the bank and financial institutions division and the Bangladesh Bank governor have been asked to attend the meeting, where some important decisions are likely to be taken to weather the ongoing challenges.