China’s duty-free products will retain their price advantage over high-street outlets even after the country brings in an average reduction on tax rates from 15.7% to 6.9% on nearly 1,500 products in July, says a leading player in the sector.

Duty-free products will continue to benefit from not only exemption of custom duty, but also from value-added goods and service taxes, China International Travel Service said at an investor forum as part of efforts to allay fears about the incoming tariff reductions.

China’s finance ministry announced the plan to cut import tariffs on 1,449 products imported from most favored nations last week, covering consumer items including apparel, cosmetics, home appliances, and drugs.

CITS posted duty-free sales of RMB 14.9 billion in 2017, up nearly 70% annually. China Duty Free Group contributed close to 40% of CITS' total income in 2017.

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