FBR reduces taxes on sugar imports

(Web Desk): The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued two new Statutory Regulatory Orders (SROs) to reduce taxes on sugar imports.

According to the FBR, SRO No. 1216 and SRO No. 1217 have been released, under which the sales tax on the import of white crystal sugar has been reduced from 18% to 0.25%. In addition, value-added tax on sugar imports has also been exempted. The rate of withholding tax on sugar imports has been fixed at 0.25%.

As per the notification, the last date for sugar imports has been set as September 30, 2025.

On the other hand, the Wholesale Grocers Association has opposed the government's decision to import 500,000 tons of sugar. They have demanded an immediate crackdown on sugar speculators and hoarding dealers.

The association's chairman, Rauf Ibrahim, told Express that dealers and the speculative mafia currently have 2.6 million tons of sugar stored in their warehouses — sufficient to meet the country’s needs for the next five months. He stated that if a crackdown on the speculative dealers is launched immediately, the wholesale price of sugar could drop to Rs150 per kilogram within just two days.

He further warned that importing 500,000 tons of sugar would waste $270 million in valuable foreign exchange. He alleged that speculators are hoarding sugar and artificially inflating prices.

Currently, sugar is being sold at Rs180 per kilogram in the wholesale market and between Rs190 to Rs200 per kilogram in retail markets. It is worth mentioning that, on the demand of sugar mill owners, 765,000 tons of surplus sugar were exported in December 2024.