Senior Vice Chairman APTMA (All Pakistan Textile Mills Association), Mr Zahid Mazhar has restated that high costs of input are resulting in closure of a large number of textile mills who are mostly engaged in manufacturing of fabric and yarn. Despite of being the backbone of the textile industry, the burden of high costs of doing business is faced by both weaving and spinning sectors in Pakistan textile industry. Mr Mazhar also said that such situations have made the textile sector unable to work in the country.
He further stated that the production of fabric and yarn is considerably higher that the local consumption, asking the government to facilitate the textile exports of surplus amount. He also warned for large-scale closures of the textile manufacturing unit resulting in massive unemployment as well as alarming level of reduced consumption of local cotton.
He demanded the government to take steps to encourage the investment in spinning and weaving sectors so that maximum cotton can be converted into the yarn and further products. By taking relevant measures the cotton growers as well as the spinning industry will equally get benefits.
Mr Mazhar urged the government to recheck the economic and agricultural policies and make sure to get maximum production target of cash crops, specifically cotton. “The textile industry has been hit hard due to the high cost of energy and high tariffs of both gas and electricity are making Pakistan’s exports noncompetitive in the global market,” Mazhar criticized. He further added that; “The cost of production of both gas and electricity is up to 30% higher than our regional competitors including Bangladesh, India, and Vietnam.”
He also urged the Prime Minister to give instructions to the concerned authorities to implement the textile packages of Rs 180 billion that were announced earlier in 2017. He mentioned that the delay in implementation of the textile package is also damaging the exports in textile sector.
Speaking on the issues he mentioned that “While our exports are falling, the textile exports of other countries like Bangladesh, India and Vietnam are rapidly increasing every year.”
