Business
GST cut on cancer drugs, namkeen & shared copter
NEW DELHI: The GST Council on Monday reduced the levy on some cancer drugs and travel by helicopters on a ‘seat-share basis’ to 5%, and lowered the tax on namkeen (fried snacks) from 18% to 12%. It also agreed to Centre’s proposal to exempt research and development (R&D) funded by private and public sources, including universities supported by central and state laws and those benefiting from income tax exemptions, from GST.
While GST was cut on namkeen and bhujia to make them more affordable, the council said that unfried or uncooked snack pellets will attract 5% tax.The decision to offer helicopter service on ‘seat-share’ basis will benefit several flyers, especially those flying for pilgrimage to Kedarnath-Badrinath and Vaishno Devi. Helicopter charters will continue to attract 18% GST.
Decisions on reducing tax on health and life insurance, a move being closely watched, as well as extension of cess on certain goods and services beyond Jan 2026, were referred to two ministerial panels.
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters that there were long discussions on issues related to insurance, which resulted in the establishment of a ministerial panel led by Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary.
No relief for payment aggregators
The panel has been tasked with submitting its recommendations by Oct-end. The ministers discussed the need for exemption, threshold for the exemptions, how senior citizens should be treated, sale of group insurance by resident welfare associations, and several other aspects. Officers had earlier failed to arrive at a consensus on health insurance.
The Council was, however, unanimous in deciding on the issue of research funding to educational institutions set up under state or central laws as well as those that enjoy income tax exemption.
Similarly, it decided to lower the levy on cancer drugs Trastuzumab Deruxtecan, Osimertinib and Durvalumab from 12% to 5%. “With the increasing burden of chronic diseases in India, this is a move toward making life-saving drugs accessible and improving health outcomes. This is further to the import exemption of customs duty on cancer drugs announced during the recent budget and a step in the right direction,” said Sudarshan Jain, secretary general at the industry body, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance.
While slashing GST on shared copter rides, the Council increased the levy on car and motorcycle seats from 18% to 28% and clarified that roof-mounted package unit air conditioners used in railways will also fall in the top slab. A decision on EV charging stations was deferred.
The GST Council also said that preferential location charges (PLC) paid while purchasing a residential, commercial or industrial unit will face the same levy as construction services.
There was bad news for payment aggregators, who have launched a social media campaign, as govt decided against any relief for them following notices sent last month. Revenue secretary Sanjay Malhotra said that the tax exemption is currently available only to banks.
While GST was cut on namkeen and bhujia to make them more affordable, the council said that unfried or uncooked snack pellets will attract 5% tax.The decision to offer helicopter service on ‘seat-share’ basis will benefit several flyers, especially those flying for pilgrimage to Kedarnath-Badrinath and Vaishno Devi. Helicopter charters will continue to attract 18% GST.
Decisions on reducing tax on health and life insurance, a move being closely watched, as well as extension of cess on certain goods and services beyond Jan 2026, were referred to two ministerial panels.
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters that there were long discussions on issues related to insurance, which resulted in the establishment of a ministerial panel led by Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary.
No relief for payment aggregators
The panel has been tasked with submitting its recommendations by Oct-end. The ministers discussed the need for exemption, threshold for the exemptions, how senior citizens should be treated, sale of group insurance by resident welfare associations, and several other aspects. Officers had earlier failed to arrive at a consensus on health insurance.
The Council was, however, unanimous in deciding on the issue of research funding to educational institutions set up under state or central laws as well as those that enjoy income tax exemption.
Similarly, it decided to lower the levy on cancer drugs Trastuzumab Deruxtecan, Osimertinib and Durvalumab from 12% to 5%. “With the increasing burden of chronic diseases in India, this is a move toward making life-saving drugs accessible and improving health outcomes. This is further to the import exemption of customs duty on cancer drugs announced during the recent budget and a step in the right direction,” said Sudarshan Jain, secretary general at the industry body, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance.
While slashing GST on shared copter rides, the Council increased the levy on car and motorcycle seats from 18% to 28% and clarified that roof-mounted package unit air conditioners used in railways will also fall in the top slab. A decision on EV charging stations was deferred.
The GST Council also said that preferential location charges (PLC) paid while purchasing a residential, commercial or industrial unit will face the same levy as construction services.
There was bad news for payment aggregators, who have launched a social media campaign, as govt decided against any relief for them following notices sent last month. Revenue secretary Sanjay Malhotra said that the tax exemption is currently available only to banks.
NEW DELHI: Indian refiners can leverage their combined consumption to seek better terms for next year’s annual contracts with suppliers, especially Russia, as a gloomy demand outlook subdues oil prices, a senior petroleum ministry official said on Thursday.
“We have seen IEA (International Energy Agency) and all such agencies lowering demand outlook in recent times.But India has emerged as a major (demand) growth centre,” he said, alluding to the growing size of India’s consumption — pegged at about 5 million barrels/day — offers a substantial market for suppliers in a tepid market.
On joint negotiations by the refiners with Russia, the official said “talks” among them “are ongoing”. Indian refiners sign annual contracts with major suppliers for part of their requirement and meet the rest through spot purchase.
The focus on Russia stems from the fact that it has become India’s top oil supplier because of discounts offered in the wake of Western sanctions and a $60 per barrel price cap, imposed after Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, curbed markets for the Russian barrels. State-run refiners mostly buy Russian oil through spot tenders.
A similar attempt by state-run refiners to secure better terms from the Middle-East suppliers about 15 years back had come a cropper.
But the official said a contract is more than the price, which follows benchmarks. “For example, one can seek discounts, longer payment credit period, destination flexibility (allowing diversion cargo to another port in India) and other terms,” he said.
Both OPEC, accounting for 40% of globally traded oil, and the IEA have in recent times pruned their 2024 demand growth forecast. In contrast, IEA’s oil market report on India has said the country will contribute a third of the global oil consumption growth through 2030 to overtake China.
For the first time in two years, benchmark Brent crude dropped below $70 per barrel last week as fear of oversupply grew amid poor show by the major economies, especially China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer. On Thursday, however, Brent rebounded to hover just below $75, buoyed by the US interest cut.
“We have seen IEA (International Energy Agency) and all such agencies lowering demand outlook in recent times.But India has emerged as a major (demand) growth centre,” he said, alluding to the growing size of India’s consumption — pegged at about 5 million barrels/day — offers a substantial market for suppliers in a tepid market.
On joint negotiations by the refiners with Russia, the official said “talks” among them “are ongoing”. Indian refiners sign annual contracts with major suppliers for part of their requirement and meet the rest through spot purchase.
The focus on Russia stems from the fact that it has become India’s top oil supplier because of discounts offered in the wake of Western sanctions and a $60 per barrel price cap, imposed after Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, curbed markets for the Russian barrels. State-run refiners mostly buy Russian oil through spot tenders.
A similar attempt by state-run refiners to secure better terms from the Middle-East suppliers about 15 years back had come a cropper.
But the official said a contract is more than the price, which follows benchmarks. “For example, one can seek discounts, longer payment credit period, destination flexibility (allowing diversion cargo to another port in India) and other terms,” he said.
Both OPEC, accounting for 40% of globally traded oil, and the IEA have in recent times pruned their 2024 demand growth forecast. In contrast, IEA’s oil market report on India has said the country will contribute a third of the global oil consumption growth through 2030 to overtake China.
For the first time in two years, benchmark Brent crude dropped below $70 per barrel last week as fear of oversupply grew amid poor show by the major economies, especially China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer. On Thursday, however, Brent rebounded to hover just below $75, buoyed by the US interest cut.
Applications for US unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level since May, indicating the job market remains healthy despite a slowdown in hiring.
Initial claims decreased by 12,000 to 219,000 in the week ended September 14, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. That was below all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The period also corresponds with the so-called reference week when the survey is conducted for the September employment report.
Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, also dropped in the previous week, to the lowest in three months.
The four-week moving average, a metric that helps smooth out volatility in the data, fell to 227,500, the lowest since June.
What Bloomberg economics says…
“Initial jobless claims declined more than expected in the survey week for September’s employment report, due in part to difficulty adjusting the data around a major holiday like Labor Day. Claims tend to be depressed in holiday-shortened weeks, then rebound the following week — so the current data have limited value as a guide to September’s payroll print,” said Eliza Winger.
Claims for unemployment benefits have remained subdued in recent months even as labor demand cooled. The US central bank’s decision to lower interest rates by a half percentage point this week reflected policymakers’ intention to maintain what Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell described as “still a solid” labor market.
“We’re trying to achieve a situation where we restore price stability without the kind of painful increase in unemployment that has come sometimes with disinflation,” Powell said during a press conference Wednesday following the rate-cut announcement.
Initial claims, before adjustment for seasonal factors, rose by 6,436 to 184,845. Texas, New York and California saw the largest increases. Applications in Massachusetts fell by the most since the end of April.
Initial claims decreased by 12,000 to 219,000 in the week ended September 14, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. That was below all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The period also corresponds with the so-called reference week when the survey is conducted for the September employment report.
Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, also dropped in the previous week, to the lowest in three months.
The four-week moving average, a metric that helps smooth out volatility in the data, fell to 227,500, the lowest since June.
What Bloomberg economics says…
“Initial jobless claims declined more than expected in the survey week for September’s employment report, due in part to difficulty adjusting the data around a major holiday like Labor Day. Claims tend to be depressed in holiday-shortened weeks, then rebound the following week — so the current data have limited value as a guide to September’s payroll print,” said Eliza Winger.
Claims for unemployment benefits have remained subdued in recent months even as labor demand cooled. The US central bank’s decision to lower interest rates by a half percentage point this week reflected policymakers’ intention to maintain what Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell described as “still a solid” labor market.
“We’re trying to achieve a situation where we restore price stability without the kind of painful increase in unemployment that has come sometimes with disinflation,” Powell said during a press conference Wednesday following the rate-cut announcement.
Initial claims, before adjustment for seasonal factors, rose by 6,436 to 184,845. Texas, New York and California saw the largest increases. Applications in Massachusetts fell by the most since the end of April.
Business
Stock market today: BSE Sensex hits fresh lifetime high, goes above 83,600; Nifty50 above 25,550
Stock market today: BSE Sensex and Nifty50, the Indian equity benchmark indices, surged in trade on Friday to hit lifetime highs following a more than expected 50 basis points rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. While BSE Sensex climbed above 83,600, Nifty50 was above 25,550. At 9:20 AM, BSE Sensex was trading at 83,636.77, up 689 points or 0.83%. Nifty50 was at 25,571.70, up 194 points or 0.77%.
Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research, Wealth Management at Motilal Oswal, says, “A 25bps rate cut is already discounted and can lead to profit booking in the market.However, a 50bps rate cut by the Fed could bring some cheer to market sentiments. Also, Fed commentary will be important as it will give clarity on the quantum and duration of the rate cut cycle. We expect the market to remain volatile in the near term with rate-sensitive sectors in focus.”
Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities noted that the short-term trend of Nifty remains positive with range-bound action, and any dips to the support levels of 25,200-25,100 could present a buying opportunity. A decisive move above 25,500 levels might propel Nifty towards higher targets.
In the global markets, U.S. stocks closed with modest losses on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 50 basis points, exceeding expectations. The S&P 500 futures rose 0.5%, while Japan’s Topix gained 2%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2%. Euro Stoxx 50 futures also climbed 0.7%.
In the forex market, the euro, Japanese yen, and offshore yuan experienced slight declines against the US dollar. Oil prices fell in Asian trading on Thursday following the larger-than-expected Federal Reserve interest rate cut, which raised concerns about the U.S. economy.
Several stocks are in the F&O ban period today, including Balrampur Chini Mills, Hindustan Copper, GNFC, RBL Bank, PNB, Bandhan Bank, Biocon, Birlasoft, LIC Housing Finance, and Granules. Foreign portfolio investors turned net buyers with Rs 1154 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 152 crore. The net long position of FIIs increased from Rs 2.2 lakh crore on Tuesday to Rs 2.37 lakh crore on Wednesday.
Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research, Wealth Management at Motilal Oswal, says, “A 25bps rate cut is already discounted and can lead to profit booking in the market.However, a 50bps rate cut by the Fed could bring some cheer to market sentiments. Also, Fed commentary will be important as it will give clarity on the quantum and duration of the rate cut cycle. We expect the market to remain volatile in the near term with rate-sensitive sectors in focus.”
Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities noted that the short-term trend of Nifty remains positive with range-bound action, and any dips to the support levels of 25,200-25,100 could present a buying opportunity. A decisive move above 25,500 levels might propel Nifty towards higher targets.
In the global markets, U.S. stocks closed with modest losses on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 50 basis points, exceeding expectations. The S&P 500 futures rose 0.5%, while Japan’s Topix gained 2%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2%. Euro Stoxx 50 futures also climbed 0.7%.
In the forex market, the euro, Japanese yen, and offshore yuan experienced slight declines against the US dollar. Oil prices fell in Asian trading on Thursday following the larger-than-expected Federal Reserve interest rate cut, which raised concerns about the U.S. economy.
Several stocks are in the F&O ban period today, including Balrampur Chini Mills, Hindustan Copper, GNFC, RBL Bank, PNB, Bandhan Bank, Biocon, Birlasoft, LIC Housing Finance, and Granules. Foreign portfolio investors turned net buyers with Rs 1154 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 152 crore. The net long position of FIIs increased from Rs 2.2 lakh crore on Tuesday to Rs 2.37 lakh crore on Wednesday.
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