Excise & Customs : Putting imported items (Electric Control Units, regulators, injectors, filters, etc.) and domestic items (CNG cylinders, High Pressures pipes and gauge and hoses, etc.) in a box to make it a "CNG Kit" does not amount to manufacture
Monday 13 July 2015
AO gets flak from ITAT for making addition on basis of cancelled agreement which didn't relate to as
IT : Where addition was made by Assessing Officer on account of unexplained investment by assessee company in purchase of land based on copy of agreement seized from sister concern of assessee, since said agreement was a cancelled document and did not relate to assessee, addition made was unjustified
When place of removal of goods isn't factory then no remission of duty on goods lost during transit
Excise & Customs : Even if 'place of removal' of export goods is port of export, 'time of removal' would be time of removal from factory; hence, if said goods are destroyed or lost in transit after clearance from factory, remission under rule 21 is not allowable
Winding up of defaulting co. was maintainable even in absence of exact quantification of overdue sum
CL: Where company had in categorical terms admitted that it was liable to pay debt, a petition for winding up would be maintainable even in absence of precise quantification
Cash deposits in saving bank account held a unexplained as assessee failed to prove source of deposi
IT: In absence of any proof with regard to cash deposited in assessee's saving bank account, Assessing Officer was justified in invoking provisions of section 69
SC dismisses Vijay Mallya's appeal against prosecution under FERA with exemplary costs
CL : Evasion of summons under FERA is an independent offence under section 56 of FERA,1973 - independent of whether accused is found guilty of the substantive offence in connection with which summons is issued
CL : Evasion of summons under FERA is an independent offence under section 56 of FERA,1973 - indepen
CL : Evasion of summons under FERA is an independent offence under section 56 of FERA,1973 - independent of whether accused is found guilty of the substantive offence in connection with which summons is issued
ITAT creates distinction between ‘quasi-capital’ and ‘loan’ for ALP computation
IT/ILT : It cannot be said that whenever any loan is in the nature of quasi-capital, the ALP for such capital shall be 'nil' rate of interest. Several types of debts, particularly long-term unsecured debts, and revenue participation investments could be termed as 'quasi-capital'. The comparable uncontrolled price of 'quasi-capital' loan could not be 'nil', unless it is only for at ransitory period and the de facto reward for this value of money is the opportunity for capital investment
Rent receipt from spouse is taxable as income from house property and not as income from other sourc
IT : Income earned by assessee from letting out residential property to her husband was liable to tax as income from house property and not as income from other sources
'Eous Must Demand Consistency In Customs, Excise Rules'
We find that benefits under the Services Exports from India (SEIS) scheme are not available to units under the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) scheme, whereas they are available for units in Special Economic Zones (SEZ). So, we are considering shifting from STPI to SEZ, where even income tax benefits are available. Do you see any problems?Yes. The problem is that income tax exemption is not available if the depreciated value of the used machinery that you transfer to SEZ exceeds 20 per cent of the total machinery installed in the SEZ unit. Also, if the transfer or redeployment of technical manpower from the existing unit to the new SEZ unit in the first year of commencement of business exceeds 50 per cent of the total technical manpower actually engaged in development of software or IT enabled products in the SEZ unit, then you lose the income tax exemption.
But, if you can demonstrate that the net addition of new technical manpower in your SEZ unit is at least equal to the number that represents 50 per cent of total technical manpower of the new SEZ unit in the said year, the exemption would not be denied. You may refer to explanation to Section 10AA (4) (ii) read with explanation 2 to Section 80 IA(3)(ii) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, Central Board of Direct Taxes circular no. 14/2014 dated October 8, 2014 and Ministry of Commerce Instruction no. 11 dated August 12, 2009 for more details and greater precision. If you find these conditions unworkable, you may represent to the Commerce Ministry to treat STPI units on a par with SEZ units for grant of SEIS benefits.
Para 4.20 of Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) restricts domestic sourcing under duty exemption scheme to advance authorisations (AA) and duty free import authorisation (DFIA). Does it mean that we cannot resort to domestic sourcing under annual advance authorisations (AAA)?
Conceptually, there is no reason to deny domestic sourcing for AAA holders. Para 7.02 A(a) of FTP allows deemed exports benefits to supply of goods against AA, DFIA and AAA. So, reading the provisions harmoniously, AAA holders should get the facility of domestic sourcing of inputs. However, the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) must clarify the matter.
In your ‘Exim Matters’ article of June 8, 2015, you have pointed out divergence in the provisions for export oriented units under FTP and related customs/excise notifications. What should we be guided by?
You cannot ignore any provisions, as the customs/excise official will take a view adverse to you based on either the FTP or the related excise/customs notification. The best course for you is to take up the matter with the DGFT and Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) through your Export Promotion Council (EPC) and demand consistency in the dispensations. Anyway, you may take note of the case of Reliance Industries Ltd. 2013 (293) E.L.T. 679 (Tri. - Mumbai), wherein it was held that the provisions of FTP shall prevail over the related notifications of the Customs authorities.
Source:- business-standard.com
Multi Commodity Exchange's Announces Futures Contract 'Gold Global'
Further expanding its bullion product suite, Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd. (MCX) on Monday announced the launch of its futures contract, Gold Global, subsequent to receiving permission from the Forward Markets Commission (FMC). This contract will be available for trade on MCX from tomorrow.
Gold Global is an international price based contract, exclusive of import premium, customs duty, sales tax/VAT, and domestic market premium among others. The contract has been designed keeping in mind the requirements of refiners, exporters, jewellers, including larger bullion physical market participants, involved in import of gold bars and re-export of jewellery. These stakeholders having significant exposure to international gold prices, need to effectively hedge against any adverse movement in prices.
The existing Gold futures contracts traded on MCX have been providing an efficient hedging mechanism to the market participants exposed to changes in Gold landed prices, which mirrors the Indian spot market perfectly. However, a category of physical participants including Indian refiners, exporters, and jewellers are looking for contracts with less international basis risk and protection against adverse international price movements and this contract will cater to their needs perfectly. The Gold Global contract will be settled based on international prices converted to Indian Rupee based on RBI Reference Rate on the date of expiry, and will have 'both option' delivery logic thus offering an inbuilt rupee hedge to the participants. The participants will also get a margin benefit of up to 75 per cent if they trade in spreads between Gold Global and other gold contracts at MCX.
Speaking on the occasion, P K Singhal, Joint Managing Director, MCX said, "While the existing gold contracts on the Exchange are already an established benchmark of price and quality in the Indian bullion markets, we seized the opportunity to further entrench our position in this market by launching the Gold Global contract. With its launch, MCX's bullion basket offerings will include one more variant i.e. Gold Global (200 grams) apart from the existing Gold (1 Kg), Gold Mini (100 grams), Gold Guinea (8 grams), and Gold Petal (1 gram), thus enabling us to meet the needs of most stakeholders of the bullion value chain."
"The Gold Global contract would facilitate hedging by all stakeholders in India's gold value chain, and therefore is a step towards making India's gold market more competitive. Separately, it will also reduce dabba trading, which is rampant especially in the Indian bullion futures market," he added.
Source:- economictimes.indiatimes.com
India Passing Through A Challenging Phase Especially In Exports: Dgft
India is passing through a "challenging phase", particularly in exports, but underscored government's commitment on ensuring ease of doing business, Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Pravir Kumar said in Chennai on Sunday.
"Right now, we are passing through a challenging phase, particularly in exports. In the past six months, there have been global issues, global turmoil also... so the exports are not doing as well as we would like to," he said.
Addressing an Open House organised by Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Chennai, Kumar said even "winning sectors" have been facing problems in the past few months, reports media.
However, the government is prepared to face the situation as "we have the inner strength and depth to absorb," any such short-term problems.
Certain "external" factors such as the "problem in Greece or problem in China" are beyond our control, but "we have to live with it," and come up with innovative ways to circumvent the problems arising out of these, he added.
However, at the internal level, the government's endeavour should be to make things easy, and "the best we can do is make trading easy," he said.
"You must be aware that the government has come up with the new foreign trade policy and you realise that the main thrust of the new foreign trade policy is on ease of doing business, making trading easy," he added.
Reducing the number of documents required for export-import is "just one of the steps" by the government in its endeavour to make ease of doing business, he said.
Meanwhile, the DGFT also recalled his department launching online payment of fee yesterday, which again is a part of efforts to ensure ease of doing business.
Further, the Revenue Department is working on a single window clearance system for customs procedures and once this takes shape in about six months it would be a major initiative, he added.
Kumar also urged exporters to do trade with countries which had signed Free Trade Agreements with India.
Source:- smetimes.in
Steel Imports Jumps 50% In First Three Months; Consumption Up 7.1%
Growth in consumption, JPC said: "Such growth stemmed both from rising production for sale (up by 2.8%) and most importantly, imports (up by 53.1%) during this period and in general, is in sync with the overall growth trends noticed in major macroeconomic parameters -- the IIP and the Core Sector Index."
India's steel imports surged over 53% in the April-June quarter of the current fiscal indicating that domestic producers continue to face pressure from cheap inbound shipments from countries such as China, Japan and Korea.
Steel consumption however grew by 7.1% to 20.10 million tonnes (MT) in the first quarter of 2015-16 helped by cheaper imports and increased production of saleable steel, shows the latest data by Joint Plant Committee (JPC), under the Steel Ministry.
Total finished steel imports grew 53.1 per cent to 2.545 MT in April-June as against the year-ago period. But imports in June 2015 were down 4.7 per cent at 0.873 MT from May. Compared to June last year, imports rose by 49.5 per cent. In the fiscal 2014-15, imports grew 71 per cent to 9.32 MT compared to 2013-14, making India a net importer of the metal.
To check rising imports, the government last month raised basic customs duty (BCD) on some long and flat steel products by 2.5%. Import duty on flat steel products was increased to 10% from 7.5%, while for long steel products it was raised to 7.5% from 5%.
During June itself, India slapped anti-dumping duty of up to $316 per tonne on imports of certain steel products from three countries, including China, to protect domestic producers from below-cost inbound shipments.
On growth in consumption, JPC said: "Such growth stemmed both from rising production for sale (up by 2.8%) and most importantly, imports (up by 53.1%) during this period and in general, is in sync with the overall growth trends noticed in major macroeconomic parameters -- the IIP and the Core Sector Index."
Domestic steel consumption fell by 3.3% in June this year to 7.175 MT against last month, but was up 6.6% compared to June 2014, it added. The export of total finished steel fell by 31.7% in April-June 2015-16 to 0.991 MT against the year-ago period.
Exports in June increased by 14.1% to 0.32 MT compared to May 2015, but decreased by 25% against June 2014. Production for sale of total finished steel registered a growth of 2.8% at 23.71 MT during April-June compared to the same period of last fiscal.
In the first quarter of 2015-16, crude steel production grew by only 0.9% to 22.511 MT against the same quarter of 2014-15. ISP Producers (SAIL, RINL, TSL, Essar, JSWL and JSPL) together produced 11.765 MT, while the rest -- 10.746 MT -- came from Other Producers.
Crude steel production by ISP Producers grew by 4.3% compared to the same period of last year, but that by the Other Producers saw a decline of 2.7% during the same period.
Source:dnaindia.com
Cotton Counter Looks Up On Increase In Export Demand
There has been a sudden spurt in export demand for cotton from some of the overseas markets, which has helped firm up cotton prices in recent times. While prices of the benchmark Shankar 6 variety has jumped three per cent to Rs 9,617 a quintal from Rs 9,336 nearly two-three weeks ago, cotton futures for near-month delivery saw 1.3 per cent gain at Rs 9,665 a quintal on the Multi-Commodity Exchange. The market hopes for even higher demand in the days ahead.
However, Indian Cotton Federation (ICF) feels export demand still remains sluggish. With China, the top destination for Indian cotton, remaining inactive in importing the commodity, exports are unlikely to see significant growth this year. In the 2014-15 season that started in October 2014, the cotton supply situation is likely to remain the same as in the 2013-14 season, ICF feels.
Cotton is predominantly a monsoon or kharif season crop. It is planted from the end of April through September and harvested during the winter. India accounts for about one-third of the global cotton area. Two-thirds of India’s cotton is produced in states like Odisha, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, where much of the crop is rain-fed. North India, comprising Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, produces cotton under irrigated conditions and accounts for 15 per cent of total production. Andhra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu contribute 30 per cent down south.
The latest cotton report released by the US department of agriculture (USDA) suggests India’s cotton output is expected to decline for the second consecutive year to 37.5 million bales in the marketing year 2015-16 mainly due to a likely drop in yields on account of delayed sowing, weather issues and low realisations.
For the 2014-15 marketing season (August-July), USDA has forecast cotton output to be 38 million bales, while the government has projected it at 35.3 million bales (one bale equals 170 kg of cotton).
India’s cotton output is projected to be 37.5 million bales from 12 million hectares harvested, the USDA report said. The Cotton Advisory Board, on its part, said the country’s total production during 2013-14 stood at 39 million bales and ICF estimates the production for 2014-15 at around 38.7 million bales.
These numbers need to be seen in the light of the recently-released report of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), which said the world’s cotton area is expected to decline by 6 per cent to 31.3 million hectares in 2015-16 due largely to lower prices in 2014-15. In India, the cotton area is projected to decrease by 5 per cent to 11.6 million hectares in 2015-16, the report said, adding that, falling prices for competing crops and a modest increase in the MSP may forestall a greater decline.
India exported 90 lakh bales of cotton in 2013-14. Exports are likely to end up at nearly 45 lakh bales this year with 35-37 lakh bales already exported as of June 30.
According to textile industry sources, India is losing its market share in cotton and man-made fibre (MMF) categories, as most of the products are made of coarse cotton yarn and MMF prices are at least 25 per cent higher than the rates prevailing in the competing countries. Under the “make in India” initiative, the government has lined up an ambitious plan for putting up a modern apparel/garment manufacturing centre in each of the northeast states. Analysts feel the focus on domestic manufacturing should raise local demand of cotton considerably.
Source:mydigitalfc.com
Assessee may claim refund arising due to clerical mistake without challenging the assessment order
Excise & Customs : Where duty has been paid based on incorrect exchange rate, there is no need to challenge assessment order in appeal/revision; assessee may claim refund arising due to application of correct exchange rate without challenging assessment order
Delhi Vidhansabha hikes upper cap of VAT on certain goods including liquor, petrol and cold drinks
VAT/DELHI : Delhi Value Added Tax (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015
Sum incurred on repairing of roads to facilitate movement of goods manufactured by assessee was allo
IT: Sum incurred on repairing of roads to facilitate movement of goods manufactured by assessee was allowable
India: Thermal Coal Imports Soar 23% At 12 Major Ports
Import of thermal coal jumped 23 per cent to 24.08 million tonnes at 12 major ports in the first quarter of the fiscal, even as the government continues to push for boosting domestic production of the fuel.
Handling of coking coal, which is used mainly for steel-making, however remained nearly stagnant with less than 1 per cent increase in the period at 8.17 MT, according to the Indian Ports Association (IPA).
These 12 major ports had handled 19.62 MT and 8.10 MT of thermal and coking coal, respectively, in the first quarter of the previous fiscal.
Altogether, they handled 32.25 MT coal during the April-June quarter of the current fiscal as against 27.72 MT in the same quarter of the previous fiscal.
Coal is the mainstay of India’s energy programme as 70 per cent of power generation is dependent on the dry fuel, while Coal Minister Piyush Goyal has been emphasising the need to increase the production by state-run Coal India.
India is the third-largest producer of coal, after China and the US, and has 299 billion tonnes of resources and 123 billion tonnes of proven reserves, which may last for over 100 years.
India has 12 major ports — Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, V O Chidambarnar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia) which handle approximately 61 per cent of the country’s total cargo traffic.
Thermal coal is used in power generation and with the world’s largest miner Coal India, which accounts for over 80 per cent of the domestic requirement consistently failing to meet its target as well as demand of the firms, the power plants resort to imports.
Less production coupled with increased demand from power firms is further widening the demand-supply gap in the country, which is likely to widen to 185.5 MT in 2016-17.
Coal India could record barely a 31 MT increase in coal production in four years from 2010 to 2014, but in 2014-15, it recorded an increase of 32 MT. For the current fiscal, CIL’s production target has been fixed at 550 MT.
CIL missed the production target for 2014-15 by 3 per cent recording an output of 494.23 MT. The company’s output target was 507 MT for the fiscal. In 2013-14, the company had clocked production of 462.53 MT against a target of 482 MT.
In 2012-13, Coal India produced 452.5 MT of coal, falling short of the 464 MT goal. The Centre has announced plans to boost Coal India’s annual production to the level of 1 billion tonnes by 2019 to meet growing fuel demand.
Source:hellenicshippingnews.com
Punjab Govt reduces penalties for wrongly claimed refund of VAT
VAT/PUNJAB : Punjab Value Added Tax (Third Amendment) Rules, 2015 – Amendment in Rule 52B
Delhi Vidhansabha hikes upper cap of VAT on certain goods including liquor, petrol and diesel
VAT/DELHI : Delhi Value Added Tax (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015
Rupee Opens Lower At 63.45 Against Us Dollar
The Indian rupee on Monday weakened against the dollar as the Index of Industrial production (IIP) numbers for May were below expectations.
The local unit opened at 63.45 per dollar. At 9.09am, the home currency was trading at 63.46, down 0.10% from its previous close of 63.40. Industrial production grew by 2.7% in May 2015 against expectations of 4.4%, led by a sharp fall in capital goods and consumer goods data.
The Sensex index gained 0.28% or 77.92 points to 27,739.32 points in pre-opening trade. Among the Asian currencies, Hong Kong dollar lost 0.004%, Indonesian rupiah gained 0.113%, Japanese yen gained 0.180%, Malaysian ringgit lost 0.184%, Philippine peso lost 0.182%, Singapore dollar lost 0.059%, South Korean won lost 0.244%, Taiwan dollar gained 0.097% and Thai baht lost 0.141%.
The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 7.89% compared with its Friday’s close of 7.80%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
Since the beginning of this year, the rupee has lost 0.68%, while foreign institutional investors have bought $13.26 billion from local equity and bond markets.
The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 96.014, down 0.001% from the previous close of 96.025.
Source:livemint.com
CBDT lays down procedure for e-filing of return without sending ITR-V under 'Electronic Verification
IT/ILT : Section 139D of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 – Return of Income – Ereturns – Electronic Verification Code (EVC) for Electronically Filed Income Tax Return
Buyer may take credit of duty paid on non-excisable inputs
Cenvat Credit : Duty paid on non-excisable goods by supplier cannot be denied as credit in hands of buyer, because law does not require buyer to assess dutiability of goods and then, take credit; buyer may take credit of 'duty paid' irrespective of 'duty payable'
Appellate authorities rightly held that sale transaction of assessee was slump sale: Karnataka High
IT : Where both appellate authorities on consideration of entire material on record had concurrently held that sale was a slump sale placing reliance on order passed by Tribunal in connection with sister concern of assessee wherein on identical facts similar transaction was held as slump sale, no interference was called for
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