US countervailing tariff on Bangladeshi products has been reduced from 35 percent to 20 percent. However, if various products, including ready-made garments, exported there contain 20 percent US raw materials, even the countervailing tariff will not be applicable, said Mahmud Hasan Khan, the president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
He said this at a press conference organized at the BGMEA building in Uttara in the capital on Saturday.
The BGMEA President said, “About 75 percent of our apparel exports to the US are cotton-based. The latest US tariff executive order clearly states that if the product contains at least 20 percent US raw materials – such as American cotton – then the additional 20 percent duty will not be applicable. That is, if we use American raw materials, we will be exempted from additional tariffs.”
However, the BGMEA President warned, “We have no room for complacency because the trade and security agreement negotiations with the US are still ongoing. If these agreements are signed, the tariffs of the countries concerned could be further reduced. Therefore, Bangladesh must be active in the negotiations and seize.
BGMEA Sr. Vice Presidents and Directors were present at the press conference.
