Government increases customs duties on 19 items

The government has increased Custom Duty on 19 items, including jet fuel, ACs and refrigerators to curb imports of non-essential goods. It has become operational since midnight last. Finance Ministry said, these changes aim at narrowing the Current Account Deficit. The total value of imports of these items in the year 2017-18 was about 86 thousand Crore rupees. The government has also announced an import duty of 5 per cent on aviation turbine fuel, earlier it was nil.

 

Curbing non-essential imports is part of the



five-pronged steps announced by the government to check widening the Current Account Deficit and capital outflows. The import duty was doubled to 20 per cent on ACs, Household refrigerators and washing machines less than ten kilogram. Besides the import duty on Speakers and Radial Car tyres has been hiked from 10 per cent to 15 per cent, While on footwears it was increased from 20 per cent to 25 per cent. The other items on import duty was increased include jewellery items, kitchen and tableware, certain plastic goods and suitcases