Prices on the rise as ZIMRA implements fresh duty charges
By Alex Bell
16 January 2012
The prices of many basic commodities are set to increase in the wake of the
latest duty charges introduced by the local revenue authority (ZIMRA),
increases which an analyst has warned will have a serious impact on ordinary
Zimbabweans.
ZIMRA has announced that a 25 percent surtax will be charged on a wide range
of imported items, ranging from food items to cars, as of the first of this
month. The list of items to be affected by these latest charges is almost
three pages long and was published online last week.
According to the list, the items include a variety of fresh vegetables, meat
and dairy, as well as dried goods like flour and pasta and even breads and
cakes. Alcohol and cigarettes, not surprisingly, have also not been spared
the surtax, which will face the 25% charge along with items like cosmetics,
footwear, candles and even soap (list included at the end of this article.)
The new surtax charges are said to be part of the coalition government’s
effort to protect local industry from imports, mainly from neighboring South
Africa and Botswana. This is despite the fact that the local manufacturing
industry is still performing well below what is needed to supply the market.
According to independent economic analyst, Masimba Kuchera, these surtax
measures should be put on hold until the issues that have kept local
industry on the back foot have been resolved. He told SW Radio Africa on
Monday that in the current economic and political climate, normal
Zimbabweans are left to ‘suffer’ the consequences, like increased prices,
which is a direct result of surtax charges.
“There is this assumption that increasing tax on imported goods will help
boost local industry. But unfortunately this is not the case,” Kuchera said,
explaining further that poor local industry and general price means
Zimbabweans are always paying more for basic commodities.
He added: “What we need is serious capital to be invested to boost local
industry. And, as a matter of urgency, Zimbabwe needs to get its political
act in order because no meaningful financial commitments will be made in the
current political climate.”
Kuchera continued that it would make more sense for the government to
balance the reality on the ground with its competitive aims. He explained
that surtax and duty should only be charged on goods where local industry
can compete.
“It should be done in stages, so where industry is producing, then surtax
can be added on the imported goods. But where industry is struggling, like
we see now, it just doesn’t make any sense,” Kuchera said.
The full list of items now facing 25% surtax charges, according to ZIMRA
are:
• 8703: Second–hand light passenger motor-vehicles of heading 87.03, which
are more than five years old from the date of original manufacture
• 0207.1100: Fresh or chilled whole chickens
• 0207.1200: Frozen whole chickens
• 0207.1300: Fresh or chilled cuts and offal of chickens
• 0207.1490: Frozen Cuts and offal
• 0305.5990: Dried fish, not smoked (excluding cod), fresh water
• 0401.2000: Milk and cream of >1% but =6% fat content, not concentrated or
sweetened
• 0403.1000: Yoghurt
• 0403.9010: Fermented milk
• 0403.9090: Buttermilk, curdled milk and cream, kephir
• 0406.3000: Processed cheese, not grated or powdered
• 0406.9000: Cheese, nes (not elsewhere specified)
• 04070000: Birds’ eggs, in shell, fresh, preserved or cooked
• 0701.9000: Other potatoes, fresh or chilled
• 0702.0000: Tomatoes fresh or chilled
• 0703.1000: Onions and shallots, fresh or chilled
• 0703.2000: Garlic, fresh or chilled
• 0706.1000: Carrots and turnips, fresh or chilled
• 0710.9000: Mixtures of vegetables, frozen
• 07119000: Other vegetables; mixtures of vegetables but no fit for
immediate consumption
• 0712.2000: Dried onions, but not further prepared
• 0713.1090: Other peas excluding garden and marple peas, shelled
• 0713.2090: Other dried chickpeas, shelled or split
• 0713.3190: Other beans, dried, shelled
• 0713.5090: Other broad beans, horse beans nes
• 0803.0000: Bananas, including plantains, fresh or dried
• 08081000: Apples, fresh
• 1601.0000: Sausages and similar products; food preparations based on these
products
• 1602.1000: Homogenized preparations of meat, meat offal or blood
• 1604.1310: Salt water potted or tinned sardines, sardinella ,brisling and
sprats
• 1604.1390: Sardines… sprats not tinned, whole or in pieces but not minced
• 19019090: Other food preparations of flour nes (excluding 1901.9010 and
1901.9020)
• 1902.1900: Uncooked pasta, not containing eggs, not stuffed
• 1902.2000: Stuffed pasta, whether or not cooked or otherwise prepared
• 1902.3000: Other pasta, nes
• 1904.3000: Bulgur wheat
• 1905.3100: Sweet biscuits
• 19059090: Other bread, cakes, biscuits, etc, nes; communion wafers, rice
paper, etc
• 2005.2000: Potatoes, preserved other than by vinegar or acetic acid, not
frozen
• 2005.4000: Peas, preserved other than by vinegar or acetic acid, not
frozen
• 2005.5100: Shelled beans, preserved other than by vinegar, etc, not frozen
• 2005.5900: Beans, unshelled, preserved other than by vinegar, etc, not
frozen
• 2007.1000: Jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, etc, homogenized
• 2007.9100: Jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, etc, of citrus fruit
• 20079900: Other jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, etc, being cooked
preparations
• 2103.2000: Tomato ketchup and other tomato sauces
• 2104.1000: Soups and broths and preparations therefore
• 2104.2000: Homogenized composite food preparations
• 2105.0000: Ice cream and other edible ice whether or not containing cocoa
• 2201.1011: Aerated waters in closed bottles or other containers, ready for
drinking
• 22011019: Aerated waters excluding 22011011
• 22011090: Other mineral waters not aerated, not sweetened
• 2201.9000: Other unsweetened waters; ice and snow
• 2202.1010: flavoured aerated waters, with added sugar, sweetener, etc
• 2202.1090: Waters including mineral aerated with added sugar sweetened etc
• 2202.9000: Other non-alcoholic beverages, nes
• 2203.0091: Beer made from malt (excluding opaque beer)
• 2203.0099: Other clear beer made from malt nes
• 2204.1019: Sparkling wine >14% not wholly produced in Zimbabwe
• 2204.1099: Sparkling wine =< 14% not wholly produced in Zimbabwe •
2204.2112: Wine (not sparkling), >14% AA, in containers 14% AA, = •
2204.2192: Wine (not sparkling), = • 2204.2199: Grape must…addition of
alcohol, =14% AA, >2L containers, not wholly produced in Zimbabwe
• 22042919: Grape must… addition of alcohol, >14% AA, >2L, not wholly
produced in Zimbabwe
• 2204.2992: Wine (not sparkling), =2L containers, not wholly produced in
Zimbabwe
• 2206.0010: Cider
• 2208.2011: Brandy containing • 2208.2019: Brandy containing more than 33
1/3% of imported spirit
• 2208.2090: Other spirits from distilled grape wine or marc excluding
brandy
• 2208.3090: Whisky excluding 2208.3010
• 2208.6090: Other vodka, n.e.s
• 2208.7090: Other liqueurs and cordials nes
• 2208.9099: Other spirits and spirituous beverages, nes
• 2401.1010: Flue-cured tobacco, of the virginia type, not stemmed/stripped
• 2401.2010: Flue-cured tobacco of the virginia type, partly or wholly
stemmed/stripped
• 2401.2020: Burley tobacco, partly or wholly stemmed/stripped
• 2401.2090: Other tobacco, partly or wholly stemmed/stripped
• 33043000: Manicure or pedicure preparations
• 3304.9100: Powders, whether or not compressed, for cosmetic/toilet use
• 3304.9910: Beauty, make-up, skin-care (including suntan), nes
• 3304.9990: Other
• 3307.3000: Perfumed bath salts and other bath preparations
• 3307.4100: Agarbatti and other odiferous preparations which operate by
burning
• 3307.4900: Preparations for deodorizing rooms, nes
• 3307.9090: Other perfumery, cosmetic or toilet preparations excluding
3301.1000 to 3307.4900
• 3401.1100: Soap and organic surface-active products in bars, etc, for
toilet use
• 3401.1900: Soap and organic surface-active products in bars, etc, nes
• 3401.3000: Organic surface active products and preps for washing skin in
liquid/cream for retail sale
• 3405.4000: Scouring pastes and powders and other scouring preparations
• 3405.9000: Other polishes, creams and similar preparations, nes
• 3406.0000: Candles, tapers and the like
• 6305.3200: Flexible intermediate bulk containers, of man-made textile
materials
• 6401.9200: Footwear covering the ankle but not covering the knee
• 6402.9900: Footwear, nes, not covering the ankle, of rubber or plastics
• 64059000: Footwear, nes
• 8418.1000: Combined refrigerators-freezers, with separate external doors
• 8418.2100: Compression-type household refrigerators
• 8418.2900: Household refrigerators, nes
• 8418.3000: Freezers of the chest type, capacity =< 800litres
• 8418.4000: Freezers of the upright type, capacity =< 900litres
• 8418.5000: Other refrigerating/freezing chests, cabinets and similar
refrigeration furniture nes
• 8516.6000: Other ovens, cookers, cooking plates, boiling rings, grillers
and roasters nes
• 8528.7200: Other colour reception apparatus for television
• 8704.2120: Motor vehicles for the transport of goods being diesel/semi
diesel double cab vehicles
• 8704.3120: Motor vehicles for the transport of goods being petrol Double
cab vehicles.