The government has reduced rice import duty for the next four months to increase supply and bring stability to the market. Rice import duty has been reduced from 25 percent to zero. In addition, the regulatory duty has been reduced from 25 to 10 percent. As a result, the total tax on rice imports has come down from 72 per cent to 25 per cent.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) on Thursday issued an order in this regard. The new duty exemption will be valid till October 31. The NBR has included the condition that the importer must get the permission of the Ministry of Food to get the approval of this duty exemption. The NBR has reduced tariffs at the request of the food ministry to keep rice prices stable.
The prices of daily necessities have started rising since the last part of last year. Then in May this year, the price of edible oil including soybean suddenly increased. It was expected that rice prices would be lower during the Boro season. However, as soon as the Boro season rice started coming to the market, the price of this staple food grain started rising. In the wholesale markets of Dhaka, Kushtia and Naogaon, the price of rice increases by two to five rupees per kg depending on the variety. It also affects the retail market.
This time at the beginning of the boro season, some paddy has been wasted due to the advance water in the haor. In addition, due to the cyclone Ashani, heavy rains across the country have damaged the paddy. Meanwhile, wheat prices are rising as supply from Russia, Ukraine and India has stopped in the world market. This is also affecting the market of Bangladesh. The price of rice in the world market is also a bit higher.
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