The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet has approved a subsidy of Rs10 per kilogram on export of 650,000 tons of sugar and reduced by 25 per cent the regulatory duty on export of potatoes.
The decisions were made at a meeting held in Islamabad yesterday with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in the chair. It amended the ECC’s Nov 12 decision to curtail sugar import to 500,000 tons and raised the ceiling to 650,000 tons. The decision will apply to consignments exported by May 16 next year.
It also approved a subsidy of Rs10 per kg on sugar export. The move will cost Rs6.5 billion to the government.
The meeting was informed that ample stocks of sugar (about 1.05 million tons) were available in the country, sufficient to meet domestic requirements on an average monthly consumption of 390,000 tons till March 15.
To improve the liquidity position of the sugar mills, the committee approved inland freight subsidy at the rate of Rs2 per kg and cash subsidy at Rs8 per kg.
“The total amount of subsidy will come to Rs6.5bn and will be equally paid by the centre and the provinces,” an official statement said.
