The existence of a mafia influence behind the arbitrary increase of imported vehicle prices cannot be rejected, Senior Professor Aminda Methsila Perera of Wayamba University told Hiru News.
The academic was responding to an inquiry from the broadcaster on the likely price impact of the 50% customs surcharge applied to imported vehicles. He did not name any company, individual or group, and offered no evidence for the claim beyond the assessment that such influence could not be ruled out.
Vehicle importers predict that prices could rise by between Rs. 500,000 and Rs. 5 million as a result of the surcharge, Hiru reported.
What the surcharge is
Vehicle imports were suspended during Sri Lanka’s economic crisis and permitted again last year. A 50% surcharge on customs duties for specified imported vehicles was then imposed for an initial three-month period from May 15.
Hiru’s report does not mention that the measure has since been prolonged. The Finance Ministry extended the surcharge to December 31 in an order issued by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in his capacity as Finance Minister, taking effect on August 15, the day the original measure was due to lapse.
The Vehicle Importers Association of Sri Lanka said after that extension that prices would climb once newly imported stock reached showrooms, projecting increases ranging from about Rs. 500,000 on a small hatchback to roughly Rs. 5 million on a large four-wheel drive. Those figures are the association’s own estimates; no official projection of the price impact has been published.
A note on the report
Hiru News headlined the story as economic analysts warning of a “vehicle price mafia”, but its report quotes only Professor Perera. No second analyst is named or cited in the piece, and no other verified newsroom has reported the remarks.
No government agency or importers’ body has responded to the allegation.
