The Myanmar parliament has passed legislation designed to limit foreign imports, boost domestic manufacturing and strengthen the Myanmar kyat. The new law calls for the formation of a new Committee for Preventing an Increased Quantity of Imports (under the Ministry of Commerce) as well as new tariffs and limits on import volumes.

“Uncontrolled imports can damage domestic production. The passing of legislation to manage the quantity of imports is needed to help the country’s economic development. The new law will be especially helpful for small and medium enterprises,” the Myanmar Times quoted Myanmar Industrial Association chair U Aung Thein as saying. He continued that the new law would “curb unnecessary imports into the domestic market,” thereby strengthening domestic manufacturing and demand for domestically-produced goods. However, he added that a thorough investigation by the new committee would be necessary before the specific measures could be decided on.

The new law is merely the latest in a series of actions to reduce Myanmar’s trade deficit to a target of USD 500 million. The deficit for the 2018-2019 fiscal year was USD 1.1 billion, although that number was down from USD 3 billion when the year began. The kyat, too, closed out 2019 at its highest value of the year: 1479 kyat to one US dollar.