OPINION
EDITORIAL
Flash Budget
IF THURSDAY'S TAX rationalisation indicates anything at all it is that the Government is getting into election mode. A broad policy decision such as a reduction in the peak level of Customs duty is usually reserved for the Union Budget, unveiled ...
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BUDGET
Capital goods: On thin edge
THE revision in the Customs duties will perpetuate the inverted duty structure in the capital goods segment. Raw materials and finished products will continue to be taxed at the same rate. To this extent, there is ...
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Tyres: A better tread
THE reduction in peak Customs rate from 25 per cent to 20 per cent and the removal of 4 per cent special additional Customs duty would offer some relief to the automotive tyre industry. The profitability of tyre ...
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Power: A positive push for power
THE reduction in import duty on power and power transmission equipment from 25 per cent to 10 per cent will reduce the levies on imported electrical equipment by almost one-third. However, given the vast scope for ...
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FMCGs: Cuts both ways
IT APPEARS to be a mixed blessing for companies operating in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) segment. Companies manufacturing soaps, detergents, shampoos and personal products, such as Hindustan Lever, Colgate ...
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Auto components: Relief in quick time
RELIEF has come in double-quick time for the auto components industry. It was only on Tuesday that auto part manufacturers complained to the media about the impact of rising steel prices on their margins and demanded a ...
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Computer hardware: Keyed up
DOMESTIC computer hardware manufacturers, such as HCL Infosystems, Wipro (its hardware division) and Zenith Computers, may be the key beneficiaries of the reduction in the excise duty from 16 per cent to 8 per cent and ...
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Steel: Firm prices save the day
THE 5 per cent cut in peak Customs duty rate and the removal of the 4 per cent special additional duty is unlikely to lead to a surge in steel imports. While certain grades of longs, cold-rolled and galvanised steel ...
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Hotels and tourism — More room for optimism
THE hotel and tourism industry, which is witnessing a turnaround in fortunes, has now received an additional boost, with the measures announced by the Finance Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh. The inland air travel tax of 15 per cent has been ...
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Paper: No blots
PAPER manufacturers are unlikely to be affected in FY 04 and at least in the first six months of FY 2005. The international prices of most paper varieties and paper boards have been on a gradual uptrend over the ...
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Petrochemicals: Party in the pipeline
PROTECTION for polymer producers is down sharply after the latest reduction in peak tariffs and the abolition of the special additional duty. The import duty on polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene and ...
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Non-ferrous metals: Sheen to continue
IT MAY appear prima facie that the reduction in import tariffs from 50.8 per cent to 39.2 per cent (after considering peak duty reduction and abolition of special additional duty) is expected to affect the ...
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Consumer durables: Less pricey, more competitive
THE incidence of Customs levies on the import of consumer durables is set to fall by about 20 per cent. This is in addition to the prospect of steady appreciation in the value of rupee. Clearly, the ability of ...
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POLITICS
Puzzle of Powell
THE US Secretary of State, General Colin L. Powell, had always seemed to be an odd person out who, on that account, was ill at ease in the present Bush Administration. Many were puzzled at his continuing to be part of a ...
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TEXTILES
Textiles, post-MFA — The dragon of spindles
With modern factories, economies of scale, A-grade infrastructure, cheap labour and fully integrated cotton, textile and garment industries, China is now set to dominate the whole range of the garment and the clothing industries. Prabhat Kumar on what the poor countries can do to compete with the Chinese dragon.
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STOCK MARKETS
Sensex and the doctrine of caveat emptor
AFTER touching the 6000 mark, the Sensex nose-dived by about 200 points. It is time retail investors became careful, as the market already seems to be over-heated and may go in for correction any time. Surely March ...
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