Tuesday, 26 August 2014

No interest if block return was filed belatedly due to delay on part of revenue to supply copy of se

IT: Where income was computed by applying GP rate, section 40A(3) could not be invoked


No appeal lies before Tribunal against pre-deposit order of Commissioner (Appeal)

Service Tax : No appeal lies against pre-deposit order of Commissioner (Appeals); further, if pre-deposit order is not challenged in appropriate proceedings, same continues to be valid and non-compliance therewith would lead to dismissal of appeal, which also cannot be challenged before Tribunal


Excise demand couldn’t be enforced on ground that process of converting raw materials wasn’t economi

Excise & Customs : Demand cannot be confirmed on conjectures and surmises and, therefore, ground that process claimed to have been adopted by assessee is not economically viable cannot lead to confirmation of demand


Penalties to be waived off if there was uncertainty as to levy of ST on commission received by auto

Excise & Customs : Where defective finished goods are returned back to assessee and used in process of re-manufacture, said goods are eligible for credit as input


Business losses can be set off against undisclosed income under sec. 68, says ITAT

IT: Set off of business loss against addition under section 68 to be allowed


Govt. notifies 49% FDI cap in defence sector

FDI/FEMA/ILT : Review of The Policy on FDI in Defence Sector – Amendment in Consolidated FDI Policy Circular 2014 effective from 17-4-2014


Cenvat credit available for event management services availed for meeting of dealers even if organis

Cenvat Credit : Event management services availed to facilitate organisation of a dealer/retailer meet for promotion, marketing, advertisement and promotion of products are eligible for credit, even though event is held in temple premises


Payment of interest by Indian branch to its overseas head-office wasn’t taxable on grounds of mutual

IT/ILT : In case of assessee, a non-resident bank, interest paid by Indian branch to Head Office and overseas branches was not taxable in India on principles of mutuality and, therefore, tax was not required to be deducted at source while making said payments


HC ordered winding up of Co. as it failed to pay salary to its CEO after losing its commercial subst

CL : Where even after publishing date of final hearing and notice having been served respondent-company had not responded to same, respondent company was not a going concern and had lost its commercial substratum which lead to only one conclusion that respondent company was not in a position to pay dues of petitioner employee and, therefore, respondent company was to be wound up


CCI imposes Rs 2,500 crore penalty on Car Cos for indulging in unfair trade practices in spare parts

Competition Act : Each original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is a 100 per cent dominant entity in aftermarket for its genuine spare parts and diagnostic tools and correspondingly in aftermarket for repair services of its brand of automobiles


Shipping Cost Of Indian Exports Twice As High Vs China

Shipping costs incurred by Indian exporters is twice as high compared to those of China and thrice of Singapore, putting the country at a disadvantage in global trade, a study has found.


The study by industry body Assocham observed that the high cost of logistics could hit India's competitiveness."Shipping a container from India costs close to USD 1,200 while from China, it is in the range of USD 600 and Singapore about USD 400," the Assocham study said, citing World Bank data.


Likewise, the turnaround time at India's best port, JNPT in Mumbai that handles over 50 per cent of the country's containers, is 1.1 days (36 hours) while it is less than 12 hours in Singapore, Dubai, Shanghai and Colombo.


"If we want to become an exporting nation with a strong manufacturing base, Indian logistics infrastructure be it ports, airports, roads or rail network, these must be of international class, built seamlessly through the entire system," Assocham President Rana Kapoor said.


According to the study, India's port handling charges are much higher while its logistics systems are under-performing compared to China, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia and OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries.


Delay in transporting goods is a major irritant for businesses engaged in trade within India as well as those exporting abroad from the country. Presently, there are 177 inter-state checkposts and 268 toll plazas across national highways, leading to costly delays, the study said.


"Technological solutions like smart cards for toll payments and pre-paid state taxes through online mode are required without delay. In fact, the success of the much awaited Goods and Services Tax (GST) will also depend on having an efficient inter-state transport system," it said.


Source:- business-standard.com





India's Jeera Exports Up 15% During April-July

India's jeera (cumin) exports has crossed 50,000 tonnes in the first four months of 2014-15, a rise of 15 per cent from the corresponding period of the previous year, industry sources said.


While, country's total jeera exports in 2013-14 (Apr-Mar) rose by 42 per cent to 121,500 tonnes from 85,602 tonnes in 2012-13.


Industry sources said export of Jeera from April to July this year would exceed 51,000 tonnes as against 44,000 tonnes in same period of 2013.


"Other jeera producing countries like Turkey, Syria and Iran have short crop. Moreover, geo-political tension in these countries have diverted demand to India over the last two years and consequently, we have witnessed good export demand," said Girish Brahmbhatt, chairman, Indian Spice and Foodstuff Exporters Association (ISFEA).


Demand for jeera has increased from across the world. There was good demand from West Asian countries before Ramzan. Also, there has been good demand from western countries which have ignored to buy jeera from Syria and Iran owing to geo-political tension.


"India is providing superior quality jeera than other producing countries at lower price which has attracted the international market. Right now, export demand is not much but it is expected to increase from next month," said Jitendra Adani, a leading trader and exporter from Rajkot.


Despite strong export demand from other countries, price of jeera has more or less remained stable because of high production. Traders and exporters expected 357,500 tonnes jeera production in 2013-14. However, it was around 302,500 tonnes. Over the last few months, jeera prices have traded between Rs 1,800 and Rs 2,400 per 20 kg in Unjha market. Presently, jeera price is ruling between Rs 1,755 and Rs 2,200 per 20 kg.


Source:- business-standard.com





Erection/installation of storage tanks not covered under BAS if its fabrication amounted to manufact

Service Tax : Fabrication of storage tanks and structures amounts to manufacture and their erection and installation is, therefore, not covered by Business Auxiliary Service


HC directs AO to verify undisclosed bank transactions of assessee for determining his undisclosed in

IT : Where Commissioner gave a number of opportunities of being heard to assessee, revision order could not be assailed for not following principle of natural justice


Rupee Strengthens Marginally Against Dollar To 60.52 Per Dollar

The Indian rupee strengthened from its previous close on Tuesday afternoon, tracking other Asian currencies.At 2.35pm, the home currency was trading at 60.5225 a dollar, up 0.07% from its previous close of 60.565.


The local unit opened at 60.535 and strengthened as much as 60.4737 in morning trades.The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 82.544, down 0.01% from the previous close of 82.549.

Since the beginning of this year, the rupee has gained 2.12%, while foreign institutional investors have bought $12.77 billion during the period from local equity markets.


The 30-share benchmark S&P BSE Sensex slipped for the first time in four days, falling 0.32% to 26,353.15 points while the National Stock Exchange’s broader 50-share Nifty lost 0.39% to 7,963.30 points.


The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 8.557%, compared with its Monday’s close of 8.559%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.


The government will issue gross domestic product (GDP) data for the June quarter on 29 August. According to analysts estimates, GDP growth will touch 5.5% for the June quarter from 4.6% in March quarter. The Controller General of Accounts will release fiscal deficit data for July on 28 August.


Source;-livemint.com





‘Servo Steerol C-6’ used as cooling and friction reducing product is a ‘lubricating preparation’, sa

Excise & Customs : 'Servo Steerol C-6' used as cooling and friction reducing product during cold rolling and mild and medium carbon steels is a 'lubricating preparation' and eligible for concessional rate of duty under Notification No. 12/94-CE


ITAT couldn’t set aside sec. 69A disallowance for bogus transaction without considering statements o

IT : Where Assessing Officer having found that transaction of purchase and sale were bogus, made addition under section 69A, Tribunal was not justified in deleting addition without going into evidence on record


Now Govt. can impose restrictions on service providers as well to prevent misuse of Cenvat credit

CENVAT CREDIT : Cenvat Credit (Seventh Amendment) Rules, 2014 – Amendment in Rule 12AAA


Govt. prescribes exchange rate under service taw law on basis of GAAP; applicable from 1-10-2014

ST LAWS : Service Tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 2014 – Insertion of Rule 11


Levy of ST on radio taxis/sale of space for advertisement other than in print media to be effective

ST LAWS : Finance (No.2) Act, 2014 - Enforcement of Provisions of – Notified Date on Which Specified Provisions of Section 114 of the Said Act Shall Come Into Force


Sale of Patasa, harda and sakaria doesn’t fall in category of sugar; their sales are exempt from VAT

CST & VAT: Where assessee dealt in patasa, harda and sakaria, said items were not sugar and sales of same were exempted from payment of tax


ITAT allows depreciation on intangibles transferred on succession of business of a Co. on going conc

IT : Where assessee had taken over business of a company as a going concern and trademark of such company was continuously used by assessee, depreciation on such intangible assets to be allowed to assessee


Govt. hikes minimum public shareholding limit from 10% to 25% for listed Public Sector Cos

SEBI : Securities Contracts (Regulation) (Second Amendment) Rules, 2014 – Amendment in Rule 19A


SEBI releases revised format for continual disclosures under Acquisition and Takeover regulations

SEBI : Formats for Disclosure under Regulation 30 of SEBI (Substantial Acquistion of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 2011


Income from resale of goods bought from holding co. not taxable if its subsidiary won’t constitute i

IT/ILT : Where assessee, purchased raw materials and spares from its holding company located abroad, in view of fact that assessee did not constitute agency PE of holding company in India, no taxable income accrued to holding company on account of sales in India and, thus, assessee was not liable to deduct tax at source while making payments to holding company


HC directs builder to repay booking sum with interest on his failure to deliver possession of flat i

CL : In a winding up petition developer was directed to pay booking amount with interest on its failure to deliver possession of flat to allottee