Aam aadmi budget: Cars, mobiles, fridges cheaper

[NinadG]

This is election budget. Just breaking economy..... So next government will be bound to raise prices again so congress will get issue in opposition

It seems Congress has now realized its position after elections are over.

 

[superdudebuddy]

settop box will become cheaper

 

[superdudebuddy]

Cool move to beat poll heat: ACs, fridges to get cheaper






here may be good news for those of you planning to buy air-conditioners and refrigerators this summer as the finance minister proposed a 2% cut in excise duty for a range of consumer durable products in the interim budget.

Excise duty on products ranging from vacuum cleaners to food mixers and microwaves will come down to 10% from the present 12%.


Most companies, though, said they would assess the impact of this announcement before passing on the gains to consumers in terms of price cuts.


This cut comes in the backdrop of a an ailing consumer durable industry which has struggled with rising raw material costs and an appreciating rupee tapering the growth of the sector over the past few years.


Domestic durable major Godrej & Boyce said price cuts are likely to come in but not immediately. George Menezes, COO, appliances division, Godrej & Boyce said, “There is a huge inventory pile up of up to 40 days.

Once this is exhausted, the benefit of the excise duty reduction will kick in for the consumer.’’


Items which will be impacted by the duty cut include freezers, dish washers, washing machines, computers and laptops (see box), grinders, juicers, shavers and hair removers, hair dryers, toasters, video recorders, DVD players, CDs, VCDs, DVDs and television STBs, monitors and projectors.


Manish Sharma, MD, Panasonic India, said, “It will help stabilize and provide growth opportunities to the industry which has been witnessing a slump for some time now.

As far as prices are concerned, we are in the process of studying and assessing the impact.”


Highlighting the lack of growth, the index of industrial production for the industry declined 12.9% year-on-year during April-December 2013 as against 3.7% in the same period last year, said India Ratings in a report.


ADA Ratnam, president and sector head of Philips Consumer Lifestyle, said, “We hope that the next government also prioritizes these products from lifestyle categories in its budget plan.”

One hurdle has been the high interest regime which is still hampering consumption, experts said.


Soon Kwon, MD, LG India said the excise cut would boost the manufacturing sector.

“This will generate a positive consumer sentiment and encourage new buyers. We are reviewing various aspects regarding pricing,” he said.


PC drops PC prices
Computer prices could drop a little with the reduction in excise duties from 12% to 10%.

The excise duty cut means a corresponding reduction in countervailing duties on imported units, so imported products too will see a similar impact.

If the entire 2 percentage point reduction is passed on to the consumer, a Rs 30,000 PC will now be about Rs 600 less.


But industry is not sure if companies will pass on the entire benefit.

“Compliance costs for the industry increased a lot last year, so there may not be much impact on consumer prices,” said Anwar Shirpurwala, executive director in hardware body MAIT.