Industry not happy with cement placed in highest slab under GST
The Dollar Business Bureau With cement coming under the 28% tax rate structure under Goods and Services Tax (GST), the industry is not happy with the government slotting it under the highest tax structure as the sector is already struggling with low demand. The Government has failed to take an advantage to spur growth in the already struggling housing and cement sector by placing the commodity in the uppermost tax bracket of 28% under the GST, the industry body Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA) said reacting to the announcement. The industry body has also lamented that the taxation on cement, the highest in the Asia Pacific region, has impacted the health of the sector that is seeing just 70% of its capacity utilisation because of low demand. “On a 50 kg bag ...
India to clock 7.1% GDP this year, 7.5% in 2018: UN report
PTI India is expected to clock 7.1% growth this year before edging up to 7.5% in 2018, according to a UN report, which warned that the country faces heightened risks related to the concentration of bad loans in the public sector banks. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) said in its annual flagship report 'The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2017' launched yesterday that the economic growth for India is projected to be stable at 7.1% in 2017 before edging up to 7.5% in 2018, underpinned by higher private and public consumption and increased infrastructure spending. Growth in India is forecast at 7.1% this year as "re-monetisation restores consumption, ...
National Steel Policy sets capacity target of 300 MT by 2030-31
The Dollar Business Bureau India takes pride in its position of 3rd largest steel producer in the world, and yet stands as a net importer of steel in 2015-16. As per the National Steel Policy (NSP) 2017, the Ministry of Steel predicts annual crude steel capacity to reach 300 million tonnes (MT) in 2030-31 from 122 MT in 2015-16. The production goal is set at 255 MT in 2030-31 from 89 MT in 2015-16. For the same year 2030-31, the export target is 24 MT and per capita steel consumption is expected to rise to 160 kg from the current figure of 61kg. In comparison to the world average for per capita steel consumption (208kg), this seems to be a modest target. The draft policy aims to reduce imports of coking coal by half. Currently, 70% of India's coking coal requirement is ...
Drop in global oil prices windfall for Indian economy: IMF
The windfall has made room for more spending on goods and services, helped improve the external and fiscal positions, and allowed a sharp decline in inflation, says Paul Cashin, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) team for India Source: PTI Crude prices have plunged around 70% over the past 18 months to around $35 a barrel Terming the slump in global oil prices as a "large windfall" for India, the IMF said this has allowed the country to spend more on goods and services, and a "sharp decline" in inflation. "The collapse in global oil prices is a large windfall gain for India," Paul Cashin, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) team for India, said on Wednesday. "The windfall has made ...
India may need to import 10 MMT pulses in 2015-16
The Dollar Business Bureau India may need to import more than 10 million metric tonnes (MMT) of pulses to meet the domestic consumption demand during the current financial year as the production is expected to go down due to shortage of rain, an industry body has said. “Considering deficit in rainfall for 2015-16, it is expected that the production of pulses for the year would decrease slightly to 17 MMT against 17.2 MMT recorded in 2014-15,” said the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM) in its study. The five major pulse producing states—Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh— contributes around 70% of the country's total Kharif pulse production. But all these states witnessed shortage or rain fall ...
