No additional duty: Uncustomary

Fiscal austerity: these two words were the basis of the finance ministers budget outlay for the upcoming year. With austerity at the epicentre of the policymaking, it was pleasantly surprising that the government announced no additional duty on customs products.
And for the skeptics who prefer the details, the government has provided relief to the public by reducing customs duty on 29 categories of products.
To boost revenue generation, General Sales Tax has been notched up to 17 percent, a 1-percent increase from the existing rate. Reforms in the indirect tax administration are also under the works and are likely to be implemented by October.
The common man depends for two meals a day for survival. Keeping that in mind, customs duty on crude palm oil has been reduced by around 11 percent, to Rs8,000 per metric ton. Likewise, duty on medicines and import of raw materials for drugs has been reduced by 5 percent.
Energy conservation, just like the public, is at the heart of the budget. To encourage the use of renewable energy sources, the government reduced duty on equipment; exemption on customs duty on the import of LPG buses is another example.
Moreover, Hafeez Shaikh proudly announced plans to distribute 300 million energy saver bulbs, free of cost - read public expenses.
The phrase,
o additional duty, was a sigh of relief for the auto sector. The government had been threatening an increase in customs duty on imports of high tech auto parts by up to 50 percent. Perhaps the high costs of production for automakers and dwindling purchasing power was the impetus in keeping the duty stable for FY11.
To minimize the cost of doing business, the government reduced duty on raw materials for laundry soaps and detergents, leather industry and glass industry. Similarly, to facilitate rice exports, husking machines are also to be exempted from customs duty.
In keeping with the rapid growth in livestock output this year; and its growing importance in food security, the government granted an exemption of duty on milk filters and allocated Rs40 billion for the agriculture, water, dairy and livestock development sector.
While measures in customs exemptions, importance of energy conservation and food security are welcome, implementation of these measures will be the real test for Mr. Shaikh and his team.