BUENOS AIRES: Argentina may revive a controversial tax system on grain exports, a local newspaper reported on Sunday, in a move that could raise tensions with farmers in one of the world's main suppliers of grains.
A similar plan to raise taxes on soy exports in 2008 sparked nationwide farmer protests that rattled global commodity markets and hit the popularity of President Cristina Fernandez, who plans to bid for re-election in October.
"The government is working on a new tax system to stabilize the income of producers and allow the state to get some of that windfall revenue coming from the strong increase in (grain) prices," Pagina 12, a daily known for its close contacts with government officials, said.
The government plans to send the new tax system to congress for approval, the newspaper said.
Besides the tax scheme, the government plans other measures to increase intervention over the trade of grains.
A government spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
In January, a protest by farmers over government-imposed export quotas halted grain sales for a week and revived the conflict with the government. Farmers say the system hurts their income at times when commodity prices are booming.
Fernandez has sought for years to increase the government's grip on the agricultural sector to get a bigger slice of a commodity bonanza and tame prices of daily food staples.
Argentina is the world's No. 1 exporter of soyoil and soymeal and the third-largest global supplier of soybeans. It is also a major wheat supplier and the No. 2 corn provider after the United States.
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