All government departments swing into action to explore ways, including tariff rationalization, to mitigate adverse impact of the Trump-triggered global trade war on Bangladesh's already-woe-stricken economy.
The jacked-up US tariffs, 37 per cent on Bangladeshi goods, higher than that of its competitors, have triggered concerns among all ministries and agencies, including the Ministries of Finance, and Commerce, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), along with exporters of apparel, leather, ceramics etc.
An initial finding by the NBR and BIDA detects thirty import items from the United States having higher tariffs.
The items, including generation and generating set, valve, meat (beef), agro-items, some raw materials and capital machinery, have duties ranging from 26.2 per cent to 80 per cent.
The officials estimate a weighted average tariff on US goods is less than 5.0 per cent in Bangladesh.
Major import items from America are cotton, scrap, and Boeing capital machinery that are mostly exempt from payment of taxes in Bangladesh. Bangladesh imports high-end cars, too, occasionally, from the USA.
"In a bid to maintain a reciprocity on tariff negotiations with the Trump administration, Bangladesh may have to increase imports from the USA," says a customs official.
A senior official of the NBR says Bangladesh, as a signatory to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), would not be able to cut taxes on any item for one country.
"If we slash taxes, we have to cut it for all countries," he adds, indicating the double bind the government revenue authority may get in.
The NBR has found that a major point of negotiation with the USA is to cut trade imbalance by increasing imports.
Officials say the MoF and MoC will hold meetings with trade experts and all relevant government wings today to determine strong points of negotiation and push forward reciprocal tariffs to keep export market competitive.
The US is the single-largest market for Bangladesh's single-biggest export item--apparel--after the European Union as a bloc.
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