Criticising the government for the 31 per cent increase in gas tariff, an All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) representative said around 140 units had already been shut and another 75 to 80 would soon close their operations.
The move would be the last nail in the coffin of the industries in general and textile sector in particular, he added.
Around 140 textile mills had already closed their operation because of high cost of doing business, inadequate supply of raw material, drastic increase in interest rate, and liquidity constraints due to the delay in refunds of sales tax, said APTMA Sindh-Balochistan Region Chairman Zahid Mazhar on Wednesday as reported by The News.
Mazhar said it left one million workers jobless. “Around 75 to 80 mills are on the verge of closure, which will add another 0.5 million to the unemployment figure in the textile industry,” he warned.
Mazhar said the textile sector had already been facing unbearable manufacturing cost, which was much higher when compared to the regional competitors.
He said the textile industry had not yet come out of the shock of the adverse decision of withdrawing zero-rating facility and the government was going to hit the industry with another blow.
The APTMA regional office bearer said increase in gas price would lead to complete closure due to the high cost of doing business compared to regional competitors.
“The gas tariff for industry in Bangladesh is $3.0/MMBTU, which is more than 50 per cent cheaper than Pakistan,” he added.
The move would be the last nail in the coffin of the industries in general and textile sector in particular, he added.
Around 140 textile mills had already closed their operation because of high cost of doing business, inadequate supply of raw material, drastic increase in interest rate, and liquidity constraints due to the delay in refunds of sales tax, said APTMA Sindh-Balochistan Region Chairman Zahid Mazhar on Wednesday as reported by The News.
Mazhar said it left one million workers jobless. “Around 75 to 80 mills are on the verge of closure, which will add another 0.5 million to the unemployment figure in the textile industry,” he warned.
Mazhar said the textile sector had already been facing unbearable manufacturing cost, which was much higher when compared to the regional competitors.
He said the textile industry had not yet come out of the shock of the adverse decision of withdrawing zero-rating facility and the government was going to hit the industry with another blow.
The APTMA regional office bearer said increase in gas price would lead to complete closure due to the high cost of doing business compared to regional competitors.
“The gas tariff for industry in Bangladesh is $3.0/MMBTU, which is more than 50 per cent cheaper than Pakistan,” he added.