We propose an expert group be set up to form a national strategy on digital fraud. This group would bring together skills in financial regulation, security economics, cyber defence, and public communications, and an understanding of the Indian financial and security systems. It should lay the foundations of a coordinated approach by the Indian State in fighting digital fraud, suggest Ajay Shah and Nandkumar Saravade.
India's recent move to remove additional 'retaliatory' duty on eight products from the United States (US), including apples and walnuts, would not have any negative impact on the domestic producers, the government clarified, even as the issue threatened to snowball into a political slugfest between the ruling and Opposition parties. The move would, in fact, result in competition in the premium market segment, ensuring better quality at better prices for consumers, especially for apples, a senior government official said. "There were certain concerns that were being raised on the mutually agreed solution that has come in, more specific to seven-eight agriculture products where we had levied additional import duties in retaliation to the steel and aluminum measures (imposed by the US)," Peeyush Kumar, additional secretary in the commerce department, told reporters in a briefing.
Highlights of the Union Budget 2024-25 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
Simplifying GST rates, removing exemptions, easing disputes, and speeding up refunds can boost investment in India and offer the best reply to Trump's tariffs, observes V S Krishnan, former member, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs.
According to reports on Monday, customs officials had seized two watches worth 5 crore from Hardik on his arrival from Dubai as he did not possess invoices for the items purchased and did not declare them at the Customs.
The statement did not name any country. But the US has often blamed India and China for purchasing Russian oil even when there are no tariffs on Beijing for it.
'We crossed Rs 1.7 trillion in three months this financial year.'
'Due to tariff uncertainty, automotive customers reduced their steel uplift by almost 15 per cent.'
Gold, silver and other precious metals along with imported mobile phones, certain cancer drugs and medical devices are set to become cheaper with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing cuts in customs duty in the Union Budget 2024-25.
An Indian official team is likely to visit Washington next week to iron out differences on certain issues before formally launching negotiations for the proposed India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA), an official said. The visit, which comes within weeks of a high-level US team visiting India, indicates that the talks for the BTA are gaining momentum.
For kids in the United States, the tariff imposed by the Donald Trump administration on countries like China may no longer be a child's play, as toy prices are predicted to touch record highs this Christmas season. However, for India's toy export industry, which was ready to take giant strides in the sector by bagging heavy orders from the US retail giants like Walmart, Amazon, and Target Corporation, gaining from the China-Plus-One policy, the US tariffs came as a heavy jolt.
Do home prices really never fall? Ramalingam Kalirajan begs to differ.
Importers will now have to provide sufficient proof to the domestic customs authorities that the goods being imported have a minimum 35 per cent value addition in the country from which it is being exported to India.
The duty reduction in feedstock would strengthen the domestic manufacturing in India making it more competitive leading to surge in exports of finished goods.
Analysts believe Tesla will first focus on building the Model Y brand before expanding -- both in terms of volume and models.
The government on Friday approved an electric-vehicle policy, under which duty concessions will be given to companies setting up manufacturing units in the country with a minimum investment of $500 million, a move aimed at attracting major global players like US-based Tesla. According to an official statement, the companies setting up manufacturing facilities for e-vehicles will be allowed to import a limited number of cars at lower customs duty. The policy seeks to promote India as a manufacturing destination for EVs and attract investment from reputed global EV manufacturers, it added.
United States President Donald Trump has said India is 'very close' to China in terms of its purchases of Russian oil and will pay tariffs of 50 per cent as he indicated that 'you are going to see so much secondary sanctions'.
'We will be able to anticipate the full picture of the impact after August, which is also the time when demand for a year begins to peak ahead of the December holidays and Valentine's Day.'
Industry associations and companies in the United States, including the US Chamber of Commerce, Coalition of Services Industries and the iconic bike company Harley Davidson have called on the Donald Trump dispensation to push India to reduce tariffs, non-tariffs, and regulatory barriers to boost American exports.
The government on Thursday imposed a 20 per cent export duty on non-Basmati rice except for parboiled rice to boost domestic supplies amid a fall in area under the paddy crop in the current Kharif season. According to a notification by the revenue department, an export duty of 20 per cent has been imposed on 'rice in husk (paddy or rough)' and 'husked (brown) rice'. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs further said the export of 'semi-milled or wholly-milled rice, whether or not polished or glazed(other than Parboiled rice and Basmati rice)' will also attract a customs duty of 20 per cent.
Industry leaders urge India to pursue diplomatic talks with the US, strengthen manufacturing, and consider China ties to gain leverage against tariff pressures.
Issues related to the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) and bilateral investment treaty between India and the UK are expected to figure during the three-day visit of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to London from April 8-10, official sources said. The minister will attend a host of meetings, including the India-United Kingdom Economic and Financial Dialogue, in London.
Customs and excise tariff reforms are still pending.
Chinese phone maker Xiaomi's India unit has been slapped with a Rs 653 crore notice for alleged evasion of import duty, as per an official statement. A show-cause notice has been slapped on Xiaomi India following recovery of documents during searches on its premises that indicated remittance of royalty and licence fee to US and Chinese firms under contractual obligations, the union finance ministry said on Wednesday. Replying to an email query, a Xiaomi spokesperson said, "At Xiaomi India, we give utmost importance to ensuring we comply with all Indian laws.
Industry seeks cut in customs duty on natural rubber.
Goods from sectors, including agriculture, precious stones, chemicals, pharma, medical devices, electricals, and machinery may get impacted if the US will go ahead with imposing reciprocal tariffs on Indian products, according to experts. They said that these sectors could face additional customs duties from the Trump administration because of the high tariff differential or gap, which is the difference between the import duties imposed by the US and India on a product.
India and the US have decided to hold sector-specific talks in the coming weeks to finalise the structure of the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), the government said on Saturday. The engagement between the two countries came in the backdrop of the USA's threat to impose reciprocal tariffs on its key trading partners, including India, on April 2.
The Indian automotive market offers around 1 million units annual volume opportunity at a price above $23,000.
The government has hiked gold import duty to 15 per cent from 10.75 per cent to check the current account deficit (CAD) and rising import of the yellow metal. The duty changes came into effect on June 30. Earlier, the basic customs duty on gold was 7.5 per cent, now it will be 12.5 per cent.
The Customs tariff is much too complicated with basic Customs duty, two types of additional Customs duty and two types of cess.
Ahead of the visit, officials from key government departments held intense discussions to identify key trade-related proposals.
Adding petrol and diesel to GST was a challenging task due to their significant role as revenue generators for both the central and state governments.
The mortality-to-incidence ratio for India was 64.47 per cent in 2022, the highest while comparing the top 10 countries with the highest number of cancer incidences.
The primary drivers: Geopolitical disruptions inflating fuel and operational costs, and a surge in travel demand.
'Increasingly, they treat gold as a financial asset in their portfolio rather than just as jewellery.'
The United States announced a 25 per cent tariff on India as the White House released an expansive list of duties that Washington, DC will impose on exports from countries around the world.
Foreign companies now pay less tax relative to their earnings than at any time in more than three decades. Foreign private companies paid 24.36 per cent of their pre-tax profit as tax in 2023-24, show numbers from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).
This import duty exemption would remain in force till October 31 this year.
According to experts, even if an additional 5 per cent of people opt to buy new vehicles, it may bring a huge boost to the sector.
'The scrapping of import duty would help Indian companies compete in international markets, thus paving the way for India becoming a space manufacturing hub for the world.'
