KARACHI: The manufacturers of auto parts have raised concerns over the import of used tractors, saying that the action would destroy the local industry.
Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers (Paapam) Chairman Mumshad Ali, in a statement, said that a huge employment base would experience a severe blow due to the import of used tractors.
“After having suffered losses in the import of used cars already, the government should not step into the similar venture again as it would create big issues for the tractor industry and farmers alike,” he added.
The Paapam Chairman said that the local tractors industry, which is heavily underutilized at the moment, is already producing best quality tractors as per global standards that are also cheapest in the world, therefore, allowing imports would put a further dent on the exchequer.
He said the foreign players in the industry never sustained, as witnessed in the past. “Even Chinese tractors failed to capture local market because our tractors are best with cheapest prices. The government should learn from past experience and refrain from repeating the same mistake again,” he suggested.
Besides a big blow to the vendors industry, he added, the imported used tractors would also disturb the allied industries of tractor manufacturing. “The local tractor manufacturing consumes 0.1 million ton of steel which is approximately 10% of the total annual production of Pakistan Steel Mills,” he said.
So, he added, in case of imported used tractors the backward integrated benefit to allied industry would also get disturbed. “Our tractor industry has big export potential as we are producing the cheapest tractors in the world. Our tractor costs around $7000 while the same quality tractor manufactured by other countries of the world cost around $14000,” he claimed.
