Vietnamese Paper Producers Ask for Zero Import Tax
Vietnam Pulp and Paper Association (VPPA) has suggested the Government reduce import tax on paper to 0 per cent from current 5 per cent in order to prevent paper prices from soaring, local media reported.
The association said prices of paper products increased by 21 per cent in Vietnam so far this year, foreing that the prices will surge further in the near time due to increased oil prices, thin paper material supply and high pulp import cost.
&ldquoVietnamese paper producers can not help raising prices as pulp imports account for nearly 70 per cent of demand,&rdquo the Vietnam Agriculture reported, citing the association.
Meanwhile, local producers are finding hard to access bank&rsquos loan to import pulp and material materials as ling interest rate has reached 21 per cent from 8 per cent last year.
The VPPA fore domestic demand for paper will hit 1.98 million tons yearly by 2010, including 1.15 million tons of packing, 385,000 tons of newspaper, and 325,000 tons of other kinds of paper.
To meet demand, local paper industry will have to build pulp mills with above 100,000-150,000 tons per year, and paper mills with above 200,000-250,000 tons a year.
In the first half of 2008, spent US$403 million on importing 509,000 tons of paper, up 44.9 per cent on year in value and 29.6 per cent in volume, the General Statistics Office said. (Vietnam Agriculture, Vietnam Economic Times)
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