Customs valuation based on ruling international price upheld; belated missing-parts claim rejected in assessable value dispute.

The assessable value of an imported sanding machine was upheld at the foreign manufacturer's ruling CIF price under Section 14(1) of the Customs Act, because the declared import price was lower than contemporaneous international trade information. The valuation was supported by the manufacturer's April 1980 price data and by a later import of a similar machine at an even higher price. The importer's belated claim that two standard belt drive motors were missing was rejected because it had not been raised before the lower authorities and was never verified. The challenge to enhancement of assessable value therefore failed.

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Issues: Whether the assessable value of the imported sanding machine was correctly enhanced under Section 14(1) of the Customs Act, 1962 on the basis of the ruling price in international trade.

Analysis: The declared import price was found to be lower than the price ordinarily charged by the foreign manufacturer in April 1980. The contemporaneous information obtained from the manufacturer showed a ruling CIF price of DM 76,000, and a similar machine imported a few months later fetched an even higher price. The belated factual plea that two standard belt drive motors were missing was not accepted, as it had not been raised before the lower authorities and had not been verified.

Conclusion: The enhancement of assessable value to DM 76,000 CIF was upheld and the challenge to valuation failed.

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