MoT Refuses Reducing Steel Ingot Import Tax

MoT Refuses Reducing Steel Ingot Import Tax

Vietnam’s Ministry of Trade (MoT) will not approve the proposal of the Ministry of Industry (MoI) and the Vietnam Steel Association on reducing steel ingot import tax to 0 per cent in the current circumstance because Vietnam needs to encourage local enterprises to produce steel ingots, said the MoT.

At present, the domestically produced steel ingot volume only accounts for 20 per cent and the remainder depends on imported sources.

The country needs to retain taxes for imported goods and reduce tax rates for made-in-Vietnam products, the MoT explained.

The ministry should also investigate production and business capacity of each enterprise before releasing specific decisions.

Vietnam spent US$180 million to import 467,000 tons of steel ingots in the first quarter of this year, down 0.7 per cent and 7.6 per cent against the same period last year, respectively.