New Delhi: The government Wednesday announced a hike in customs duty on select items to curb “non-essential imports” and narrow the current account deficit. The move will be applicable to 19 items, such as aviation turbine fuel and consumer appliances such as TVs, refrigerator, ACs and speakers.
The revision in customs duty tariffs – or taxes applicable to imports – will take effect from midnight, an official statement said. The move is in line with the government’s aim to bring down non-essential imports to contain the current account deficit and capital outflows. The total value of imports of these items stood at Rs.86,000 crore in 2017-18, the ministry of finance noted.
The import duty – or customs duty applicable to imports – was doubled to 20 per cent on ACs, refrigerators, and washing machines of less than 10 kilograms, according to the official statement.
It also announced hikes to the tune of 50 per cent on basic customs duty on speakers and radial car tyres, trunks/suitcases, and travel bags, and household items such as shower bath, sink, tableware and kitchenware made of plastic. A basic customs duty was levied on import of ATF or jet fuel. A basic customs duty of 5 per cent will be applicable on jet fuel. The current account deficit widened to 2.4 per cent of GDP in the April-June quarter.