Car sales unprecedentedly plunge in Balkh: Sellers

MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Pajhwok): The sales of vehicles have dropped to a lowest level due to people’s weak economic situation in northern Balkh province, auto sellers said on Thursday.

Fakhruddin Samari, an auto seller, told Pajhwok Afghan News that the people were not in good economic condition to purchase cars.

He said in the past he would sell up to 10 cars in a week , but now he could not sell even one car in a month.

In the past, he said, sellers were charged one percent sales tax, but currently both sellers and buyers were charged tax, contributing to the low customer sentiments.

Mohammad Omar, another car showroom owner, has similar complaint, saying the people are in dire economic situation and so their sales have declined. He said he would sell up to eight cars in a week in the past, but now he could not sell even one car in one week.

In addition to sales tax, cars sellers also pay the rent of the parking lot (bargain) where they park their cars for sale because of which they cannot meet their daily expenses.

Sohrab, another car seller, also held similar statements, saying due to various problems during the past twoyears, their sales dramatically dropped.

Sharifullah Azizi, head the auto sellers union, admitted both sales and the rates of cars had decreased.

“The people cannot buy cars, currently only right hand drive vehicles are somehow sold in the market because their prices are low”.

To a question about the method of tax collection by the General Revenue Department, he said car dealers had been distributed vehicle sales registers and they paid one percent sales tax to the government, but now they were charged one percent extra sales tax.

But Asmatullah Salimi, head of the General Revenue Department , said that no changes had been brought to the sales tax collection and the vehicles’ sellers were bound to pay only one percent of their sales tax.

Car sellers in the past would refuse to pay sales taxes, but now they were alerted to pay taxes on time, he said.

The caretaker government officials say they are working on short-term and medium-term plans to reduce unemployment and create employment opportunities in coordination with experts of relevant ministries and related agencies to improve the economic situation of the people.

aw/ma

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