New customs rules: $2.2m lost daily as 600 Iranian trucks stuck at Pakistan border
Business
Senate body to write a letter to PM to take up the matter
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - A representative from Tehran told a Pakistani parliamentary panel this week an estimated daily economic loss of $2.2 million was being caused by Iranian trucks stuck on the border with Pakistan over the past six months due to new customs rules, a press release said.
Pakistan last year made it compulsory for Iranian transporters to provide a bank guarantee equivalent to the customs duties and taxes imposed on goods being delivered to the National Logistics Corporation (NLC) Dry Port Quetta via Taftan, a border crossing with Iran. Tehran does not demand similar guarantees from Islamabad.
“One of the most pressing issues discussed was the ongoing crisis at the Pakistan-Iran border, where over 600 trucks carrying trade goods have been stuck due to customs officials demanding court orders,” the Senate Standing Committee on Finance said in a press release after its meeting.
The Iranian representative at the meeting said each truck carried goods worth approximately $11,000 and the delay was costing traders about $100 per day per truck, which ultimately raised the price of goods for consumers.
“The drop in the number of trucks crossing the border in the past six months has led to an estimated daily economic loss of $2.2 million,” the statement quoted the Iranian official as saying.
The senate committee would now write a letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urging him to take up the matter at the next cabinet meeting.
“This issue has reached a critical point. It is not only a matter of economic losses but also a matter of national pride. The situation is deeply concerning for the country as a whole,” said Saleem Mandiwalla, the chairman of the committee.
