Bangladesh wants Turkey to cancel import tax on garments

The Bangladesh government has asked Turkey to cancel the 17.5% tariff imposed on Meng's imports of garments, and claims that such taxation has seriously affected its sales to European countries.

This request was made during the opening meeting of the Economic Relations Department of the Fourth Joint Economic Commission for Bangladesh and Turkey.

In the early days, developing countries were allowed to export their clothes duty-free to Turkey. However, in order to protect its domestic industry, Turkey has imposed a 17.5% tariff since July 2011.

According to statistics of the Export Promotion Bureau, due to the impact of Turkish import tariffs, garments exported from Bangladesh to Turkey during the period from July to September 2012 decreased by 9.21% compared with the same period of last year.

The export volume of knitwear products decreased from US$272 million in 2010-2011 to US$124 million in 2011-2012, while exports of weaving fabrics decreased from US$245 million to US$231 million.

At the opening meeting, Bangladesh’s Finance Minister AMA Muhith said that the imposition of import tariffs has pushed down the development of clothing exports in the country, and to a certain extent has also reduced the interest of Bangladesh trading groups in exploring this European emerging market, Turkey’s export prospects.

The Turkish delegation was led by its Minister of Labor and Labor, Faruk Celik.

Responding to Bangladesh’s request for a reduction in tariffs on its clothing imports, Turkey stated that it will sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Bangladesh, so Bangladeshi garment exporters can benefit from tax-free access to the Turkish market.

However, as Turkey is struggling to win the qualifications of EU member states, it must obtain the EU's permission before carrying out any such trade agreement.