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FMCG firms lower prices after GST rate cut ITC, Dabur, HUL and Marico have reduced prices of various products already in stores to pass on the benefits of GST rate cut to consumers Packaged goods companies have started lowering the prices of products that are already in retail stores to pass on benefits they received from the GST rate cut.New Delhi-based Dabur India Ltd on Tuesday said in a statement that the company had reduced prices of its existing stocks by 9% across categories like shampoo, skin care and home care products. “The company is passing on the benefits on existing stocks by providing primary discount of 9% to its trade partners,” Lalit Malik, chief financial officer of Dabur India, said. “In accordance with the GST laws, we had last week communicated to all our business and trade associates directing them to start charging the revised lower GST rates, wherever applicable, on all existing stocks. We have also directed them to pass on the GST benefit to the end co...

CBEC chief tells firms, restaurants to lower prices Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) Chariman Vanaja Sarna has written to 100 major companies including ColgatePalmolive, Dabur, Nestle, and Hindustan Unilever, and 15 restaurants including McDonald´s, Café Coffee Day, and MTR, to pass on the benefit of reduction in goods and services tax (GST) rates to consumers. The move comes amid instances of companies and restaurants persisting with high rates, raising profiteering concerns.In a letter to company heads and associations, Sarna asked them to go for a commensurate reduction in the prices of products and give it wide publicity.“While it is a legal requirement, you will agree that for all citizens this is an important social responsibility. It would be most helpful if the reduced prices are also given wide publicity,” the letter reads.The letter was sent a week after the GST Council went for a massive trimming of items in the 28 per cent bracket, besides reducing rates o...

CBEC Chief  Missive to FMCGs Pass on Benefits Post GST Tweak Letters sent to over 100 companies; move follows warning by finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia Keeping up the pressure on the consumer goods sector, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) chairman has written to the biggest companies to ensure that cuts in the goods and services tax (GST) are passed on to customers. The GST Council has cut rates on 178 products including chocolates, detergent, toothpaste, shampoo, air freshener and shaving cream to 18% from 28% and the government is keen that this translate into lower prices for buyers. “We have reached out to over 100 companies,” CBEC chairman Vanaja Sarna told ET. “This is essentially an appeal asking them to pass on the tax cuts to consumers.” India’s biggest fast-moving consumer goods companies include Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Nestle, Dabur, Godrej Consumer Products, Amul, Perfetti Van Melle, L’Oréal and Mondelez. A top executive at a large diversified ...

12 and 18 percent GST Slabs may be Merged and 28 percent for Demerit Goods Says CEA Land, realty and natural gas could soon come under GST; tax mop-up in line with expectations The government may combine the 12% and 18% slabs for goods and services tax (GST) into one in the near future and reserve the 28% rate only for demerit goods, said chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian.While India will never move to a single GST rate, over time there would be a “poor man’s” rate (0% and 5%), a “core” rate (the 12%- 18% combination), and the demerit rate (28%), Subramanian said during the course of a 90-minute interaction at the ET office. Cement and white goods are not demerit goods, but the government was deliberately “going slow” on those items due to revenue considerations.The chief economic adviser, who had last year proposed a revenue neutral rate of 15.5%, said GST collections were not doing badly and the government would take a call on the overall fiscal situation in a few weeks. ...

NSE cautions brokers and investors against unsolicited messages Leading stock exchange NSE has cautioned traders and investors against unsolicited messages being circulated by unregistered entities to induce investment and sale of shares.Earlier, BSE had also issued similar message to investors. The direction comes after the bourses and capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) noticed that "unsolicited messages are being sent to induce investment or sale of the stock of certain listed companies, indicating target prices by unregistered or unauthorised entities". "Trading members are requested to advise their clients to remain cautious on such unsolicited messages being circulated by unregistered or unauthorised entities," National Stock Exchange (NSE) said in a notice The exchange also said that in case the trading member "suspects that there is an unusual trading pattern" by any client then it should release the payo...

No Monopoly Govt will Ensure Digital Inclusion The government will not allow any monopoly over the internet to exist in India even though it upholds freedom of speech, electronics and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said.“India believes in freedom (of speech). But I can tell you that any kind of abuse of the platform for extraneous and collateral purposes will not be allowed,” the minister said in an interview to ET, addressing concerns over how social media may have been used to influence the US election results and how India plans to deal with similar situations. There are “laws in place” to deal with situations like that and the government is in favour of “digital inclusion” but not in favour of “digital monopoly”, Prasad said. “You may recall the whole concept of Free Basics by Facebook — you get through only when you go through my gateway — we had taken a very strong position on that,” said Prasad, who is also minister for law and justice. Two years ago, the telecom regula...

HC judges, experts brainstorm on GST litigations With the goods and services tax(GST) in place, 20 judges from 12 high courts brain stormed with experts and top government officials on identifying grey areas in the new regime that may throw up litigations in coming days. Top domain expert sand officials from the GST Intelligence and the Central Board of Excise and Customs briefed judges, according to documents available in the public domain. The deliberations took place at a recent national judicial conference for high court judges on the GST regime organised by the Bhopal based National Judicial Academy. Topics ranging from ´potential areas of conflict and litigation under GST´to ´comparative analysis of concepts: GST visavis Central Excise, Service Taxand VAT´, were discussed. The Business Standard,New Delhi, 20th November 2017

Act fast on GST rate cut or face action Hasmukh Adhia Companies, including FMCG firms, might be prosecuted if their retailers do not immediately cut the prices of products whose goods and services tax (GST) rates have been slashed.Union Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia says the retailers or the companies cannot continue with higher prices on grounds that the old stocks have not been exhausted. “We have made provisions for the companies to claim the difference from the government as input tax credit. But I am not willing to accept their argument to postpone passing on the benefits to consumers till they have disposed of their old stocks.” According to him, the new prices should be effective from November 15.  The GST Council in its last meeting this month cut the tax rate on 176 items from 28 per cent to 18 per cent and on two to 12 per cent. There was a huge demand to make these cuts. Speaking in a Doordarshan interview in which Business Standard was present, Adhia, who is...

GST rules changed on refund claims The Finance Minister has decided  thet applications/documents/forms pertaining to refund claims on account of certain Zero reated supplies shall be fileld and processed manually till further orders. Last Wednesday, notification  no 55/2017-central tax was issued, amending teh central goods and services tax (CGST)Rules and precribing new refund  application form  RFD-01A. Simultaneously, the Central Board of Excise and Customs(CBSE) presribed the procedure through Circular 17/17/17/2017-GST. For refund of Integrated GST (IGST) paid on export of goods,the present  procedure for disbursement through custom remians unchanged.For refund of IGST paid on export of services or supplies to Special Economic Zone (SEZ) developers or units, RFD-01A must be filed by the supplier on the common portal. Then, a print out of the form should be given to the jurisdictional tax officer, with the necessary documentary evidence. For refund o...

NSE s SME Platform to List 100th Co Today The number of listed firms on NSE's small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) platform would touch 100-mark on Monday and further traction is expected in the next six months with 50 more initial public offerings on this segment, the top official said. So far, 99 companies are listed on the NSE's Emerge platform with an aggregate market capitalisation of over Rs 7,600 crore. However, on the rival BSE's SME platform, more than 200 companies got listed in over five years of its existence. BSE and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) had launched SME platforms in 2012, becoming the only two bourses to offer such a segment in the country. The Economic Times, New Delhi, 20th November 2017

Govt Seeks RS 13,000-cr Surplus from RBI The government has not asked the Reserve Bank to pay any special dividend and is only seeking Rs 13,000 crore of surplus lying with the central bank, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg has said. In August, the RBI had paid a dividend of Rs 30,659 crore for the fiscal ended June 2017. It was less than half the Rs 65,876 crore it had paid in 2015-16 The government had budgeted for a Rs 58,000 crore dividend from the RBI in its Budget for this fiscal year. “There is no proposal at this stage to ask for any special dividend. What is being discussed is to only ask for what the RBI earned this year but did not distribute. That is about ?13,000 crore. That's what the government has suggested the Reserve Bank to transfer,” Garg said. RBI's profit was about  Rs 44,000 crore, of which  Rs 30,000 crore has been distributed and  Rs13,000 crore it retained towards risks and reserves. So the government has made a...