Sudan Faces Import Paralysis

The Sudanese Importers Chamber has stopped importing and paying taxes to the state. (Photo: Reuters)
The Sudanese Importers Chamber has stopped importing and paying taxes to the state. (Photo: Reuters)
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Sudan Faces Import Paralysis

The Sudanese Importers Chamber has stopped importing and paying taxes to the state. (Photo: Reuters)
The Sudanese Importers Chamber has stopped importing and paying taxes to the state. (Photo: Reuters)

The Sudanese Importers Chamber announced the suspension of imports and the non-payment of any customs or tax duties to the state, for a period of three days starting Sunday, in protest against the increase in the customs rate.

The decision constitutes a major shock to the government, which relies mainly on import and export customs revenues to run the state’s affairs in light of the stifling economic crisis in the country.

In a statement on Thursday, the Chamber said that the increase in the exchange rate of foreign currencies would augment customs duties by 30.8 percent, which will have dire effects on the living conditions in the country.

The Sudanese Importers Chamber called on all its employees to stop all imports, and to refrain from paying customs and tax fees and any other government fees for three days, until reaching an agreement with the concerned authorities.

In turn, the Sudanese Ministry of Finance denied in a statement, the adoption of any decision to increase the customs fees. The ministry’s official spokesman, Ahmed Al-Sharif Mohamed Abdel-Rahman, said that the price of the dollar varies according to the policy adopted by the country’s central bank.

A decision was announced in June, eliminating the customs exchange rate used to calculate import duties.

The move comes within a reform plan monitored by the International Monetary Fund to give debt relief and attract new financing.

Economic Expert Al-Fateh Mahjoub Othman told Asharq Al-Awsat that the decision to raise the price of the customs dollar to equal the exchange rate of the Sudanese pound in all government transactions removes one of the biggest hurdles to the Sudanese economy.

He added that the decision would help the government improve its public finances, and increase its spending ability in the first and second quarters without resorting to borrowing from the Bank of Sudan.



9 EU Countries Call for Talks on Ending Trade with Israeli Settlements

Israeli soldiers take aim during a raid in the old town of Nablus city in the occupied West Bank on June 10, 2025. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
Israeli soldiers take aim during a raid in the old town of Nablus city in the occupied West Bank on June 10, 2025. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
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9 EU Countries Call for Talks on Ending Trade with Israeli Settlements

Israeli soldiers take aim during a raid in the old town of Nablus city in the occupied West Bank on June 10, 2025. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
Israeli soldiers take aim during a raid in the old town of Nablus city in the occupied West Bank on June 10, 2025. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)

Nine European Union countries have called on the European Commission to come up with proposals on how to discontinue EU trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Thursday.

The letter, addressed to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, was signed by foreign ministers from Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

The EU is Israel's biggest trading partner, accounting about a third of its total goods trade. Two-way goods trade between the bloc and Israel stood at 42.6 billion euros ($48.91 billion) last year, though it was unclear how much of that trade involved settlements.

The ministers pointed to a July 2024 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice, which said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there are illegal. It said states should take steps to prevent trade or investment relations that help maintain the situation.

"We have not seen a proposal to initiate discussions on how to effectively discontinue trade of goods and services with the illegal settlements," the ministers wrote.

"We need the European Commission to develop proposals for concrete measures to ensure compliance by the Union with the obligations identified by the Court," they added.

Israel's diplomatic mission to the EU did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said Europe must ensure trade policy is in line with international law.

"Trade cannot be disconnected from our legal and moral responsibilities," the minister said in a statement to Reuters.

"This is about ensuring that EU policies do not contribute, directly or indirectly, to the perpetuation of an illegal situation," he said.

The ministers' letter comes ahead of a meeting in Brussels on June 23 where EU foreign ministers are set to discuss the bloc's relationship with Israel.

Ministers are expected to receive an assessment on whether Israel is complying with a human rights clause in a pact governing its political and economic ties with Europe, after the bloc decided to review Israel's adherence to the agreement due to the situation in Gaza.