Liberalised tariff — a nightmare for manufacturers

A former chairman of the Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers has argued in a Dawn opinion piece that the National Tariff Policy 2025-30 could hurt local factories. The policy, approved last year, aims to cut the simple average tariff to 9.7pc and the weighted average to under 6pc by 2030, with peak tariffs capped at 15pc.

The writer rejects the World Bank's 2022 finding on anti-export bias, saying high utility, finance and tax costs, plus limited access for foreign buyers, explain weak exports. Exports of manufactured goods have been flat for more than ten years, the writer says, and tariffs are not to blame. A 15pc cap would give the country the most open tariff regime in the region, the writer warns, with job losses across textiles, leather, autos and surgical goods.

The piece also argues that a large home market and industrial depth are matters of national sovereignty, citing India's 12pc trade-weighted tariff and auto protection above 120pc. In the writer's view, fixing the cost of doing business must come before opening markets to global competition, or Pakistan will export jobs rather than goods.