AMMAN — The
National Society for Consumer Protection (NSCP) said a Cabinet decision to extend a zero general sales tax on
vegetable oil will relieve citizens’ financially and result in a liquidity flow
among traders.
اضافة اعلان
On Sunday, a Cabinet session chaired by Prime
Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh decided to extend its decision related to reducing
the general sales tax imposed on vegetable oils to zero, after it reached 4
percent in recent weeks. The decision will continue until the end of next
November.
NSCP’s head Mohammed Obeidat welcomed the decision,
saying that “it will relieve citizens of the successive rises in the price of
oil, which posed an additional burden on their incomes.”
“We hope that consumers will notice this exemption
directly from the effective date of the decision,” Obeidat told
Jordan News.
He noted, however, that some traders may opt for
manipulating the price. “We are used to some traders presenting flimsy
arguments that the purchase was made at high prices, and that it is not
possible to sell at the new prices, until the old quantity runs out,” he said.
Obeidat stressed the need to tighten control over
markets; “to ensure that the sale is done according to the new prices”.
Jordan Chamber of Industry’s representative of food, catering,
agricultural, and livestock industries sector, Mohammad Walid Al-Jitan, said
that the decision to cut the sales tax came to preserve the price of oil.
“This will be reflected on consumers and merchants,
too,” he noted.
Head of the
Amman Chamber of Commerce Khalil Haj
Tawfiq told
Jordan News that citizens “will not notice a significant
impact on the prices after this reduction”.
“However, this will help in providing financial
liquidity to the importer, therefore, it is a positive decision”, he added.
He pointed out that it was necessary to exempt oil
from tax, since it is a basic staple, like sugar and rice.
“Reducing or canceling taxes will encourage
importers to buy more quantities of food, and this will be reflected on the
local food stock,” he explained.
Head of Jordan Chamber of Commerce Nael Al-Kabariti
said that “the global price of oil rose significantly during the Ukraine
crisis, and this decision came as a relief for citizens.”
“The international price of oil began to decline
significantly recently, but did not reach the pre-war levels,” he explained in
an interview with
Jordan News.
He insisted that oil is a basic commodity, and
reducing the tax rate to zero percent will provide liquidity to merchants. He
noted that the continuity of the decision “depends on the global levels of oil
prices.”
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