By John Lee.
Iraq's Council of Ministers has approved a series of preventive trade measures aimed at protecting domestic industries.
These include the imposition of a 60% additional customs duty on imported transparent containers and single-use plastic cups from all countries, which will be in place for four years. The market will be monitored throughout the implementation period.
The Iraqi Customs Commission is tasked with enforcing this new duty and providing regular reports to the Department of Industrial Development and Regulation, detailing the volume of imports, revenue generated, countries of origin, and importers.
Additionally, the Ministry of Industry and Minerals is directed to assess recent trends in imports, ensuring that any increases over the last three years are justified. The Ministry will also evaluate the capacity of domestic companies to meet market demand without causing price inflation and examine the economic rationale for such protection.
Regulatory bodies are instructed to audit the impact of these protective measures, which will take effect 120 days after the issuance of the decision.
Furthermore, the Council of Ministers has approved a recommendation to raise customs duties on rebar (reinforcement steel) in sizes ranging from 10 to 32 mm by an additional 10%, bringing the total customs duty to 30%. This decision is made under the authority of the Minister of Finance, as per Article 2 of the Customs Tariff Law (Law No. 22 of 2010, as amended).
(Source: PMO)
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