Friday, September 05, 2008, Ramazan 4, 1429    

Appeal for lowering caustic soda prices

Faisalabad—Chairman All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) Muhammad Riaz Sheikh and former Chairman APTPMA, M.Iqbal Arbi have regretted the raise in the prices of locally manufactured caustic soda products and deemed it extremely harmful for the textile processing industry. They appealed to Mian Muhammad Adrees, Chairman Caustic Soda Manufacturers Association (CSMA), to refrain from enhancement in the prices of caustic soda products and restore the prices to the previous level. In a press statement here Thursday they said,”Even the slightest enhancement in the prices of Caustic Soda products, especially during the ongoing era of globalization, would render the products uncompetitive and oust us from the international export market.”

They stated that during preceding month, the prices of caustic soda flakes were enhanced from Rs 36,848 to 42,326 per metric ton, while the prospect of enhancement in the prices of caustic soda liquid and solid cannot be ruled out either. There are only two caustic soda manufacturing units in Pakistan whose raw-materials are available, by and large, from local sources.The enhancement has been motivated through profiteering in gross contravention of the universally acclaimed norms of monopoly and cartels,they contended.—APP