PESHAWAR: The Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce has claimed that the export of fresh fruits and vegetables to Pakistan has been suspended for two weeks after “high increase” in customs tariffs by Islamabad.

A statement issued by the Afghan Taliban media claimed that since Pakistan increased customs duty on fresh fruits and vegetables recently, many traders quoted by them stated that this tariff had made the export of fresh fruits more expensive for them.

Farooq Ahmadi, a businessman, alleged that every year when Afghanistan’s export season came, Pakistan allegedly increased the taxes. “This time the tax was increased by 18 per cent on tax-exempt fruits and vegetables,” he claimed.

However, traders from Pakistan told Dawn that there was no doubt that taxes had been increased in the recent federal budget, but expressed unawareness about the suspension of trade with Afghanistan.

The traders further said that no such information about the suspension of the trade had been shared with them.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2024