Written by The Banking Post
The shipping ministry will hold a high-level meeting tomorrow to discuss Chattogram port’s proposed tariff hike, as port users and trade bodies prepare to strongly oppose the plan.
Shipping Adviser Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain is expected to chair the meeting, the second round of talks after the first ended inconclusively in June. Representatives from exporters, importers, shipping agents, and business chambers are set to join alongside Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) officials.
Business groups, including the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Shipping Agents’ Association (BSAA), have already requested the CPA to withdraw the proposal. They argue that the planned charges — covering port entry, pilotage, loading and unloading — are 50% to more than double current rates.
“This is not the right time for a tariff hike. The proposed increases are unreasonable and will only add pressure on businesses and trade,” said BSAA Chairman Syed Mohammad Arif.
Critics also accuse the CPA of operating in a monopoly market while failing to meet global benchmarks in efficiency and service standards. The Chattogram Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CMCCI) has warned that higher tariffs would fuel inflation and raise commodity prices.
“As charges are paid in dollars, the depreciation of the taka has already pushed up costs every year. In 2008, the dollar was Tk76; now it is Tk121 or more. Businesses are already under strain,” said CMCCI Senior Vice President AM Mahbub Chowdhury.
Port officials, however, argue the revisions are long overdue. Most tariffs were set in 1986, with only minor adjustments in 2007-08. Earlier attempts in 1996 and 2012 to revise the structure failed amid pushback.
The CPA insists that operating under a nearly four-decade-old tariff regime is unsustainable, stressing that the proposed changes are necessary to align with rising costs. But shipping agents warn the move could make Bangladesh’s port charges — already among the highest in South Asia — even less competitive.
