PINAREREPASO ng Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) sa antitrust regulator ng bansa ang foreign shipping charges dahil maaari umanong napakataas nito na magreresulta sa kawalan ng ‘competitiveness’.
Hiniling ni Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez sa Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) na silipin ang umano’y sobra-sobra at hindi makatuwirang sinisingil ng foreign shipping lines sa mga importe at exporter.
“We are requesting the Philippine Competition Commission, through Chairman Arsenio Balisacan, to act on the concerns of business sector regarding questionable destination and origin charges imposed on local importers and exporters,” wika ni Lopez.
“These excessive charges and fees are recurring issues that have brought significant negative impact on our local industries.”
Tinukoy ang joint study ng Export Development Council at National Competitiveness Council, sinabi ng DTI na ilang shipping lines ang naniningil ng kuwestiyonableng fees sa local importers at exporters.
“Some logistic firms make freight cost less transparent in order to benefit exporters overseas at the expense of Philippine importers,” ayon pa sa pag-aaral.
Lumabas pa sa pag-aaral na nasa $2 billion hanggang $5 billion ang nawawala sa bansa dahil dito.
Ayon kay Lopez, nagpapahirap din ito sa mga consumer dahil ipinapasa ng mga importer sa buying public ang dagdag na gastusin.
“Philippine exporters are hit hardest by these excessive fees, making our products more costly. Filipino consumers also bear the impact as the additional costs of imported goods are passed on to them,” dagdag pa ni Lopez. ELIJAH FELICE ROSALES
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