Pakistan To Use Fastmarkets’ Ferrous Scrap Index For Customs Valuations
Pakistan’s government has said that Fastmarkets’ import index for ferrous scrap will be used for customs valuations of ferrous scrap, according to an official ruling published on February 25.
The decision came after meetings to determine customs values, held on January 14 and February 3 with key industry stakeholders – including the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCC&I), the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCC&I) and the Pakistan steel rerolling mills association.
The government said a number of complaints had been received in relation to import valuations, which were causing problems for importers at the clearance stage because prices in the international market vary based on factors related to demand and supply.
An exercise to determine the customs values of the subject goods afresh was initiated under section 25-A of the customs act 1969, during which the government was made aware of the scrap price index published by Fastmarkets.
The ruling states that, to ensure transparency, fairness and uniformity, all future valuations should be linked to the Fastmarkets import price index, with freight factors added in when published prices are fob assessments.
Any fob price will have $40 per tonne added to account for freight charges, according to the ruling.
Most participants in the meetings agreed that it would be appropriate and fair if the values of the remeltable scrap were hedged with an “internationally accredited publication” and copies of Fastmarkets prices were provided by participants during the meetings.
The goods covered by the new ruling include remeltable iron & steel, shredded scrap, heavy melt scrap and press bundle scrap, from all origins.
Fastmarkets launched its Pakistan shredded price index in November 2020 to complement its existing steel scrap prices in the South Asia region, having risen in prominence in the global market during the pandemic.
Fastmarkets calculated its weekly steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Port Qasim, Pakistan, at $469.17 per tonne on Friday, up from $450.60 per tonne a week earlier.
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