Moscow, Jan 23 - Russia has scrapped a 5 percent import tariff on unpacked black and green tea for nine months to stimulate domestic packaging and exports, the government said on Tuesday.
The government web site said the tariff will be scrapped one month after an order dropping it is published officially.
The publication in the official gazette takes place several days after the web site announcement. Under Russian legislation, tariffs are scrapped initially for nine months, after which the government takes a decision whether to drop them indefinitely or not.
In June last year, the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade said a rise in domestic tea packaging would increase investment in the sector, including plant construction and repairs, as well as earn the state extra tax revenue.
Rusteacoffee, the industry lobby, estimated Russian tea consumption last year at 173,000-174,000 tonnes and said the tariff scrapping could boost this by some 15,000 tonnes between 2007 and 2010. Half would be consumed in Russia and half packed there before being exported to neighbouring countries.
Rusteacoffee has been lobbying for an increase in domestic packaging. In 2003, the government agreed with the lobby's proposal to double to 0.8 euros per kg a minimum import tariff on tea in teabags.
The basic tariff on teabags is 20 percent of the customs value.
In November, the government said that under an agreement signed between Russia and major tea supplier Sri Lanka, Moscow would cut the teabags tariff to 12.5 percent within 3-4 years after Russia joins the World Trade Organisation.
Rusteacoffee expects the share of tea in teabags to rise to 35-40 percent in 2008 from around 30 percent in 2005 and 24 percent in 2004.
Over 90 percent of tea consumed in traditionally tea-drinking Russia is black tea imported mainly from Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, China, Kenya and Vietnam.