Former member of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Libya Mraj’a Ghaith explained in an exclusive statement to our source the impact of the Finance Minister of the Government of National Unity’s decision to raise the customs dollar rate to 6 dinars, up from 2.25 dinars.
Ghaith stated that the impact is clear, as the valuation of imported goods invoices will increase, leading to higher customs duties. This, in turn, will raise consumer prices because importers will pass on any costs they incur, including customs fees and other charges, to consumers as part of the product’s overall cost. He described the adjustment as a significant jump in commodity prices.
Ghaith continued by providing an example: if an importer’s supplier invoice is worth $1 million, under the previous exchange rate its value in dinars would be:
1,000,000 × 2.25 = 2.25 million dinars
Assuming a 10% customs duty, the customs fees would amount to 225,000 dinars.
Under the new exchange rate, the invoice value becomes:
1,000,000 × 6 = 6 million dinars
The customs duties would then amount to 600,000 dinars.
Ghaith concluded that the difference in customs fees would therefore be 375,000 dinars, an additional cost that will ultimately be borne by consumers.
He added that customs duties will increase by approximately 2.67 times, noting that he believes this outcome is the intended objective given the governments’ control over customs revenues.
