India Tweaks Export, Import Duties To Cushion Impact Of Higher Raw Material Prices

India has cut customs duty on raw materials for coal, iron and steel, and plastic products to tame inflation in the country. According to a string of tweets by the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the government also reduced import duty on products plastics and levied export duty on iron and steel products.

“We are reducing the customs duty on raw materials and intermediaries for plastic products where our import dependence is high. This will result in reduction of cost of final products,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Twitter on Saturday, as she announced a series of steps to fight soaring input cost pressures.

The government reduced import duty on some raw materials of steel to nil, and levied export duty on some steel products. Also, measures are being taken to improve availability of cement and reduce its cost through better logistics.

To bolster domestic production, the export duty on iron ore, too, has been increased to as high as 50% in some cases.

These changes came along with an excise duty cut in petrol and diesel. The central excise duty cut via reduced road and infrastructure cess would have a revenue implication of Rs 1 lakh crore a year to the government.

The last time the excise duties were reduced was in November 2021, when petrol and diesel prices were lowered by Rs 5 and Rs 10, respectively.

All the changes will be effective May 22, 2022.