Illicit importers up to new tricks

Government-implemented interventions to curb the flow of ultra-cheap imports of textiles and fabrics from China and other Asian sources are showing signs of success. But, according to Brian Brink, CEO of the Textile Federation, they are slowmoving procedures. “The on-going battle continues,” he told FTW. “But there is still a long way to go.” At this stage, the SA Revenue Service (Sars), with the interaction of all the industry sector stakeholders, is handling the initiative on illegal imports. According to Brink, the introduction of the reference pricing database, which acts as a trigger to help Customs when a product is cleared or declared below those reference prices, is making slow progress. “The only way we can jointly monitor the effect of this initiative is in the declared prices of imports,” he added, “and they are moving upwards. “There are still people who are importing at throwaway prices – but they will eventually get nailed.” However, the importers of illicit goods are getting smart in the loopholes they are finding to surmount the protective measures. Just one such trick was monitored earlier this year. “Until May,” said Brink, “Lesotho was just not an exporter of blankets to SA. But from June, it just took off, with 1 000 tonnes of blankets a month coming in from Lesotho. “And, at the same time, the volume of Chinese imports dropped.” But, identifying and putting a stop to this one strategy has not deterred the importers. Said Brink: “They’re always looking for other holes in the system. It’s an on-going battle.” CAPTION Attempts to curb the flow of cheap textile imports are making headway.