Skip to main content

Services PMI contracts as GST hits demand

Image
By
Services PMI contracts as GST hits demand
Services, the biggest sector of the Indian economy, contracted in November because of the goods and service tax (GST) affecting demand, shows the widely tracked Nikkei purchasing managers´ index (PMI). The PMI fell to 48.5 points in November from 51.7 in the previous month.The November reading is the lowest since August
A reading above 50 points denotes expansion and one below that is contraction.This implies that the country´s growth story will take time to pick up significantly after economic expansion did rise to 6.3 per cent in the second quarter, from 5.7 per cent in the first one.
Even then, the Reserve Bank of India might not cut its policy rate on Wednesday because input prices are rising.However, the employment situation gave relief as jobs rose in the services sector.“Business under performance emanated from the GST, which contributed to sluggish demand andalower customer turnout, according to an ecdotal evidence,” said Aashna Dodhia, economist at IHS Markit and author of the report.
Despite unfavourable demand, service providers continued to add to their workforce numbers as business sentiment in the services sector for the next 12 months rose at the strongest pace since July.The services PMI follows the manufacturing one, which showed robust growth during November.
Accordingly, the Nikkei Composite Output Index, which maps both manufacturing and services, fell from 51.3 in October to a three-month low of 50.3 in November, signalling broad stagnation in private sector output.On prices, input cost inflation quickened to its fastest since October 2013, and, accordingly, service providers increased their average selling prices in November.
“That said, cost pressures further intensified at service firms (fastest inflation since October 2013), which could constrain output growth in the near term and reduce any central bank appetite to reduce interest rates,” Dodhia said.Besides food and fuel costs, higher taxation led to an increase in overall input prices.
India Inc, however, is demanding interest rate cuts to further build on the positive sentiment generated by the rebound and upgrade of the country´s sovereign rating by Moody´s.
The Business Standard, New Delhi, 6th December 2017

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shrinking footprints of foreign banks in India

By
Shrinking footprints of foreign banks in India Foreign banks are increasingly shrinking their presence in India and are also becoming more conservative than private and public sector counterparts. While many of them have sold some of their businesses in India as part of their global strategy, some are trying to keep their core expertise intact. Others are branching out to newer areas to continue business momentum.For example, HSBC and Barclays Bank in India have got out of the retail business, whereas corporate-focused Standard Chartered Bank is now trying to increase its focus on retail “Building a retail franchise is a huge exercise and takes a long time. You cannot afford to lose it,” said Shashank Joshi, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ’s India head.According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, foreign banks’ combined loan book shrunk nearly 10 per cent from Rs 3.78 trillion in fiscal 2015-16 to Rs 3.42 trillion last financial year. The banking industry, which includes foreign banks…
Post a Comment
Read more

New money laundering norms stump jewellery sector

By
New money laundering norms stump jewellery sector Dealers with turnover of Rs 2 crore and above covered; industry says threshold too low The central government has notified the money laundering rules for the gems and jewellery sector with immediate effect. Now, any entity deals in precious metals, precious stones, or other high-value goods and has a turnover of Rs 2 crore or more in a financial year will be covered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA, 2002). The limit of Rs 2 crore would be calculated on the basis of the previous year’s turnover, said the notification. The directorate general of goods and service tax intelligence has been appointed under the Act. Sources said the government’s move to apply the PMLA to the jewellery sector was a fallout of income-tax raids on jewellers soon after demonetisation last November, when it was found that they sold gold and jewellery at a huge premium and accepted old currency notes as payment. The notification, issued on Augus…
Post a Comment
Read more

Confusion over branded food GST

By
Confusion over branded food GST The GST Council's statement over the weekend on applying tax on branded food items has left most of the trade confused.

Even though the Council has not changed the rates on food -0 per cent on unbranded stuff and 5 per cent on brands -many small traders who didn't levy GST earlier said they could come under the 5 per cent slab after the clarification.

While they predicted some increase in consumer prices, large players said they can absorb GST in many ways and keep prices steady.

"Trade is confused and hence on behalf of our chamber, we have asked our members to go ahead and charge 5 per cent GST," said Sushil Sureka, general secretary of the Ahilya Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Indore.

The statement clarifying the application of GST came after some businesses were found deregistering their brands and selling under corporate brand name without paying tax, after the Council exempted unbranded food from the new all-encompassing indirec…
Post a Comment
Read more