The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has removed all import duties on onions, effective immediately from November 6, 2024, to reduce import costs and stabilize prices, which have reached up to Tk 150 per kilogram in Dhaka. This zero-duty policy will be in effect until January 15, 2025. Previously, the NBR had retained a 5 percent import tariff after cutting a regulatory duty in September. The Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) recently advised the NBR to implement the duty-free policy, as local onion supplies tend to dip between October and January, ahead of the next harvest season in March. Heavy rains disrupted early onion varieties this year, further reducing supply. The recent 20 percent export duty on onions imposed by India, a primary supplier, has also driven up import costs, contributing to price hikes. Bangladesh’s domestic production meets about 80 percent of its onion demand, but prices have surged 27 percent over the past month.
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