Saudi Arabia re imposed 5% customs duty on steel rebars & cement imports except those coming from GCC countries after a temporary exemption that lasted for 2 years. This decision was circulated to all Saudi border ports for implementation as of the beginning of 2010.
Saudi Arabia had prior to that approved a cut in customs duties on steel since April 2004 from 20% to 5%. GCC had also approved to duty exemptions on steel & cement imports two years ago, hence becoming totally duty free imports, in order to tackle the crisis of tight supply that prevailed in the market then, restraining the upward trend of building materials prices that reached record levels.
Other GCC countries are expected to follow the Saudi example of imposing customs duties of 5%.
According to the decision of the GCC Financial & Economic Cooperation Committee made at the 80th meeting in Muscat, Oman at the end of May 2009 had called for a hold on any further exemptions on rebar, bricks & cement imports in all GCC countries and for the application of protectionism as of Friday midnight, January 1st 2010, as the reasons for calling such exemptions are no longer existent, as well as the expiration of the period during which countries used to afford duties on imported rebar and cement.