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other major global ports, even after the adjustment.

Addressing the meeting, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Mahmud Hasan Khan termed the steep rise in tariffs unacceptable.

Talking to The Daily Star, Khan said they argued that the country’s foreign trade would lose competitiveness if such an excessive tariff hike were implemented.

Business expenses need to be reduced ahead of LDC graduation, he added.

Khan said they proposed gradually raising the tariffs by 10 percent annually in phases instead of increasing them by such an exorbitant 40 percent.

Opposing the tariff hike, Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association (BSAA) Chairman Syed M Arif said at the meeting that after the berth operators and the private off-dock operators hiked tariffs, if the port tariffs were also hiked, it would further raise overall trade costs.

He warned that in the face of such tariff hikes, foreign shipping lines would have no option but to increase freight charges as well, which would negatively impact the country’s foreign trade.