Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2016-05-17

Revision of CESS levied on Export of Rubber

- For the purpose of encouraging the consumption of natural rubber produced in Sri Lanka, by the local value added industries, a CESS of around Rs.15/- per kg is charged for export of rubber as raw rubber. Presently, 80% of the natural rubber produced in the country is consumed by the local industrialists while about 20% is exported as raw rubber. Due to the decrease of price of rubber in Sri Lanka, concurrently with the decrease of the price of rubber in the world market, the planters including the small scale rubber estate owners are now in dire straits and it has been predicted that the existing low price of rubber will prevail until the year 2020. Under the circumstances, with a view to increasing the price of rubber, to provide relief to rubber planters by creating competition between the rubber exporters and the local producers of rubber products for raw rubber, the proposal made by Hon. Navin Dissanayake, the Minister of Plantation Industries to reduce the CESS levied on export of raw rubber from Rs. 15/- to Rs.4/- per kg, in accordance with the recommendation of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management, was approved by the Cabinet.