Shoemakers complained to Yanukovych about import pressure

Ukrainian shoe makers appealed to the President of Ukraine with a request to eliminate mass violations of the principles of fair competition in importing shoes.

As stated in the appeal of Ukrkozhobuvprom, "violations of fair competition in the import of footwear causes significant harm to domestic manufacturers, limits their opportunities for the development of production and can lead to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs."

According to representatives of the league, the products of Ukrainian factories are being squeezed out of the domestic market. This, they said, is the result of massive imports of shoes at dumped or underpriced prices. In 2010, almost 122 million pairs were legally imported with an unrealistic average customs value of $ 3,5 per pair. Raising the customs value to $ 7 over the 2011 months of the 4,5 year does not improve the situation, since over the past year, prices for basic shoe materials have increased by 20-40%, the statement says. So, the cost of production of a pair of leather shoes in Ukraine is at least $ 20, with only a part of the salary for workers in production costs exceeding $ 5.

For non-payment of due payments during customs clearance, imported goods in the market receive a price advantage of at least 30-50%, and the state budget loses billions of hryvnias, the shoe makers considered in the league. For this reason, the share of Ukrainian shoes in the country's market is only 15-20%. According to Ukrkozhobuvprom estimates, the annual volume of this market in retail prices is up to 25 billion hryvnias.

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In Ukraine, there are almost 1500 shoe factories that provide jobs for up to 30 thousand people. Due to import substitution, the industry, according to shoe makers, can increase the number of employees (including in related industries) to 100 thousand.

Working in conditions of fierce competition, the footwear industry, the shoe makers said in a message, requires constant updating of technological equipment that is imported at 100%, as well as the purchase of modern materials, some of which are also imported. In this regard, representatives of the league propose introducing a temporary exemption of equipment import from VAT, as well as deferring 90 days of VAT payment when importing materials that are not produced in Ukraine.
 
In addition, shoe makers consider it advisable, among other things, to abolish the mandatory certification of children's shoes, which, according to their data, is not used in any country in the world, “does not bring any benefit to children, but is only an instrument of pressure on the manufacturer by the regulatory authorities and stimulates corruption. " This was reported by the news agency LigaBusinessInform.