Bpcl May Import Ethane From Us For Its Petchem Unit

State-run Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) could look at importing ethane from the United states to power its refineries.If BPCL goes ahead with its plan, it will be the second company to do so after the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries.

“Ethane is available in abundance in the US. We are evaluating the future of ethane in this country and studying if there is demand for the fuel in India. We could use it to fuel our ventures. The cost of importing and the savings the fuel is being worked out,” said an official from BPCL.

BPCL has an integrated refinery expansion project at Kochi at the cost of Rs 14,225 crore augmenting its refining capacity to 36.5 million metric tonnes per annum (mmtpa) from the present 30.5 mmtpa which is about an increase of 20% in refining capacity. An additional 5.3 mmtpa of petroleum products will be available in the market after the expansion.

Source:- khabarindia.in

No additions on firm solely on basis of statement of partner made during survey later on retracted

IT : Where Assessing officer, while making addition in hands of assessee-firm as well as its partner, solely relied upon statement of partner recorded at time of survey which was subsequently retracted, addition made by Assessing Officer were to be deleted

Safeguard Duty To Lift Steel Companies Profits: Moody's

Moody's has said the 20 per cent safeguard duty on some variants of steel imports is credit positive for domestic producers and will improve their profitability.

"The imposition of a safeguard duty on certain categories of hot-rolled coil steel imported into the country is credit positive for Indian steel producers because the duty will support domestic steel prices, improve producers' profitability and their leverage metrics," Moody's Investors Service said in a report.

"For our rated entities in India, Tata Steel (Ba1 stable) and JSW Steel (Ba1 stable), the safeguard duty is

credit positive as it staves off some of the downward pressure on their realisations caused by cheap imports."

The safeguard duty and a depreciating rupee will provide a stabilising impact on domestic prices and demand-supply equations, it said.

The 20% duty - which was announced on September 14 - took effect immediately and will be levied for 200 days.

Surging imports - especially from China, South Korea and Japan - have resulted in an imbalance between the supply and demand of steel in India and led to a sharp drop in prices. Domestic prices fell 25 per cent between June 2014 and June 2015 owing to a 57 per cent increase in cheaper imports, one third of which came from China, Moody's said.

"The safeguard duty and a depreciating rupee will provide a stabilising impact on domestic prices and

demand-supply equations although the extent of price increase may vary and fall short of the duty imposed," Moody's said.

The weak rupee makes steel imports more expensive and therefore, helps domestic steel producers indirectly, it added.

Source:- profit.ndtv.com

Instant Coffee Makers Import Raw Coffee As Prices Rise Here

 Indian instant coffee exporters are depending more on imported raw coffee for their shipments, thanks to global fall in coffee prices and relatively high prices of raw coffee in the country, even as weakening rupee has pushed exports.

While the total coffee exports from India for nine-and-a-half months to September 15 showed marginal increase at 2,36,779 tonnes year-on-year, the instant coffee re-exports jumped 22% to 46,127 tonnes for the period.

Global coffee prices plunged following a larger-than-expected crop output in Brazil, the largest producer. Weakening of the Brazilian currency too contributed to the fall in global prices.

Prices of Indian green coffee of both varieties - Arabica and Robusta - are about 10% higher than global prices. So, instant coffee exporters are increasingly opting to import raw coffee.

Hyderabad-based CCL Products (India), the country's top instant coffee exporter that ships to 80 countries, is now sourcing coffee from African countries, Brazil, Columbia, Vietnam, Mexico, Columbia and Peru.

Challa Srishant, MD of CCL Products, feels that instant coffee is winning more fans globally because it is cheaper and more convenient to prepare than the regular filter coffee. Its quality has also improved, he said. Latest trends in instant coffee are functional coffees, in which certain ingredients are added for health benefits like green coffee extract for weight loss, he added..

Source:- economictimes.indiatimes.com

Russia Restricts Import Of Meat From Up Plants

India’s buffalo meat exports to Russia, which commenced earlier this year, have hit a roadblock following several cases of foot-and-mouth disease reported from Uttar Pradesh.

Sources told FE that Russia had commenced import of buffalo meat earlier this year from four processing plants located in Aligarh, Barabanki, Rampur (Uttar Pradesh) and Aurangabad (Maharashtra) where inspectors from Russia had been stationed to monitor quality.

“Russia has decided to limit buffalo meat deliveries from units located in Uttar Pradesh following several cases of foot-and-mouth disease which had been reported from the state,” an official said.

After months of discussion and inspections of plants last year, Russia has decided to import buffalo meat from India.

As Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus have common customs standards, the buffalo meat exports commenced to these three CIS countries earlier this year.

Russia is among the few countries that had put a ban on import of meat and poultry products from India due to occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease years ago. Although, India is globally one of the largest buffalo meat suppliers, Russia did not import any meat from the country before 2015.

Russia’s move to source buffalo meat from India follows the ban imposed on fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, milk and dairy imports from the United States, the European Union, Australia and Canada in response to the sanctions imposed on it last year.

The Russian president had asked for limiting food imports from those countries that had imposed sanctions on Moscow for its support of rebels in eastern Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea.

India had made it clear that it will not support sanctions sought to be imposed on Russia by a select group of countries led by the US.

Russia was earlier exploring possibility of importing from India and the decision to set up an office in the country for monitoring buffalo meat shipment was taken in a meeting last year in Delhi by Dmitry Rogzin, deputy prime minister of Russia, with external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj.

Meanwhile, officials said that concerted efforts to eliminate diseases such as rinderpest and foot-and- mouth disease among buffalo population have borne fruit with a sharp increase in exports of meat products from India in the last couple of years.

India’s buffalo meat shipment has risen sharply from R13,745 crore in 2011 – 12 to R29,282 crore in the last fiscal. Countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Egypt, Thailand and Saudi Arabia are the key export destinations for the buffalo meat products.

The major areas for buffalo meat production include Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab.

Source:- financialexpress.com

Courtesy Deficient Rainfall India To Import Edible Oil Worth $14Bn In 2015-16, A Rise Of $4Bn From Previous Year

 During the current financial year 2015-16 India will be importing edible oils worth $14bn and this is due to poor rainfall. In financial year 2014-15 India imported edible oils worth $10bn. A deficient monsoon is also building pressure on pulses.

A study by industry body, Assocham said that in 2013-14 the import bill was $7.2bn, increasing by over 46 per cent in the subsequent year. The rain fall deficit this year is around 12 per cent, production of oilseeds in states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu is likely to drop, which will push India's vegetable oil import bill.

Demand of vegetable oil in the country is increasing, but, the supply side is not able to meet this growing demand. According to a release by the Assocham, responsible factors leading to this situation of wide demand-supply gap include, low and unstable yields of most oilseed crops, and uncertainty in returns to investment, which result from the continuing cultivation of oilseeds in rainfed, high risk production environments.

Industry Association's Secretary General, DS Rawat, in a statement said that for the optimum growth and development of oilseed economy a vibrant and efficient processing sector is a pre-requisite, which is sadly but truly not available in India.

"India's oilseed processing sector has been plagued by a slew of technological and policy issues culminating in the existence of a processing sector low in efficiency and capacity utilization", said DS Rawat.

Source:- merinews.com

Mandatory Export Policy For Sugar Likely Soon

The sugar industry is widely anticipating an announcement on a mandatory export policy from the government to replace the existing export subsidy scheme in the new crushing season beginning October 1, while officials say they are evaluating several options to deal with the excess sugar, the result of successive years of record surpluses.

Industry sources told ET that the central government will "very shortly" announce the mandatory sugar export policy . The central government had announced a subsidy of Rs 4,000 a tonne last year for export of raw sugar as the pressure of excess sugar production in the last five years had pulled down prices, and affected the capacity of mills to pay farmers for cane.

But the country could export only 1 million tonnes of sugar in this production year, even as output is expected to surge to record levels for the sixth consecutive year. Officials in the food ministry said there were a number of proposals to help the sugar industry and farmers, before the sugar crushing season began.

"We don't want to spread speculations on if we will be giving quotas to companies for mandatory export sugar or if we will give further any subsidy on export," a food ministry official said. "In the regulated regime prior to 2013, there was a Sugar Export Promotion Act and quotas were allocated. So it is not something bizarre if we now do it again. Let it happen and when it gets notified, we will talk."

If the central government accepts a mandatory sugar export policy, then there will be no export subsidy , as it will not be compatible with World Trade Organization rules. Without export subsidy , based on the current international rates, sugar mills can get an ex-mill price of Rs 17 a kg for raw sugar.

Based on current price, this means they will have to bear a loss of about Rs 6 per kg on the sugar they export. A large number of sugar mills don't see any problem in absorbing this loss. "We used to sell 10 per cent sugar as levy sugar at lower than the market price. The mandatory export will be just like the levy mechanism. But this will help to get rid of the excess sugar, which is our biggest concern," said the managing director of a sugar cooperative from western Maharashtra.

Narendra Murkumbi, vice chairman and managing director of Shree Renuka SugarsBSE -1.34 %, said mandatory exports will be tough to implement."In principle, mandatory export of sugar is a good idea. The 3-4 million tonne surplus sugar in the country is driving down prices, and any solution that helps to take care of the surplus is good. But implementing it will be a challenge," he said adding: "Continuing export subsidy is the right solution to take care the short-term problem of surplus sugar."

Echoing the industry's demand about cane price, Murkumbi said: "Right now, sugar mills do not have the capacity to do another season.We need help to bridge the gap between the FRP (fair and remunerative price for cane) and what the mills can pay the farmers."

The food ministry official said the government is working to help export Indian sugar to Indonesia, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. "Indonesia is a very significant market in the Southeast Asian region, consuming over 3 million tonnes of the sweetener. Thailand has an advantage over India as they get to export sugar at 5 per cent and we attract a duty of 15 per cent. We are trying to work with them under the Regional Cooperation for Economic Partnership," he said.

Source:- economictimes.indiatimes.com

TP adjustments restricted to international transactions with AE and not in relation to entire turnov

IT/ILT : Transfer pricing adjustment has to be restricted to International transaction and not in relation to assessee's entire turnover

Circulars can't interpret notifications, says Supreme Court

Service Tax : Circular interpreting exemption notification and opining that said exemption would not be available to 'mutual funds agents' is violative of section 37B as it forecloses 'discretion or judgment' of adjudicating authority

TPOs working under Commissioner (TP) shall handle Specified Domestic Transaction cases

IT/ILT : Section 92CA Of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 – Transfer Pricing – Reference To Transfer Pricing Officer (TPO) In Specified Domestic Transaction Cases

RBI relaxes norms on equity investments by banks

BANKING : Review Of Equity Investment By Banks

Illness couldn't be an excuse for delay in filing appeal when assessee wasn't ill at the time of exp

IT: In order to constitute reason for delay in filing appeal under section 249, illness must be at time of expiry of limitation; if assessee/appellant was ill but got alright, illness cannot be any excuse for delay in filing appeal

TPOs working under Commissioner (Transfer-Pricing) shall handle Specified Domestic Transaction cases

IT/ILT : Section 92CA Of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 – Transfer Pricing – Reference To Transfer Pricing Officer (TPO) In Specified Domestic Transaction Cases

SEBI issues revised formats for disclosure under Insider trading norms

SEBI : Revised Disclosure Formats Under Sebi (Prohibition Of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015

Now banks can grant loans and advance to their CEOs/full time Directors without RBI's nod

BANKING : Guidelines On Compensation Of Chief Executive Officer/Whole Time Directors – Restrictions Under Section 20 Of The Banking Regulation Act, 1949 – Loans To Directors

Assessee trying to sell goods in domestic market in disguise of export is liable for penalty

CST & VAT : Karnataka VAT - Where assessee was transporting in a vehicle its product from Belgaum to Mumbai and officer-in-charge of check post intercepted said vehicle and having noticed that goods were not meant for export as claimed and transaction was within country imposed penalty upon assessee under section 53(12), imposition of penalty was justified

Forex loss or gain shall be considered while determining operational cost in transfer pricing cases

IT/ILT : Profit or loss arising out of foreign exchange fluctuations has to be taken into consideration while arriving at operating cost in transfer pricing matters

Winding-up plea couldn't be initiated against debtor-Co. for non-payment of time-barred debts

CL : Where company petition for winding up of respondent company on its inability to pay debts filed by petitioner-company was barred by limitation, petition was to be dismissed

No denial of registration to trust just because its incidental activities were profitable in nature

IT : Where assessee's primary purpose remained advancement of objects of general public utility, even if an incidental or ancillary activity for purpose of achieving main purpose was profitable in nature, denial of registration was unjustified

FinMin unveils guidelines of 'Gold Monetization Scheme' and 'Gold Bond Scheme'

IT : Introduction Of Gold Monetization Schemes

M.S. Plates, Angles and Channels used in construction of plant are eligible for credit as capital go

Cenvat Credit : M.S. Plates, M.S. Angles, M.S. Channels and H.R. Plates purchased and utilized in construction/erection of plant are eligible for credit as capital goods

Search proceedings can't be initiated against an issuer of seized cheque

IT : When cheque issued by assessee to searched person was found from searched person, cheque did no more continue to belong to assessee; further where no satisfaction was recorded by Assessing Officer of person searched and cheque was also undated, conditions for issuing notice to assessee under section 153C were not satisfied

No concealment penalty if income not found during search, was voluntary declared post search

IT: Where assessee filed revised return and had suo motu offered additional income and same was not detected during any course of action by revenue authorities, it could not be said to be a case of concealment of income inviting penalty action under section 271(1)(c)

ITAT suggests legislative amendment to give more time to TPO for passing orders

IT : Sub-section (3A) of section 92CA provides that where a reference is made to TPO, an order may he made at any time before sixty days prior to the date on which limitation period referred to in section 153, or as the case may be, in section 153B, expires

Property let out by trust to 'Airlines' for imparting technical training as per its objects is chari

IT : Where assessee, educational society, let out part of its property for efficient utilization of its assets with a larger purpose of imparting technical training in said campus, assessee could be said to be carrying on a charitable activity and income therefrom was exempt from tax

Apex Court remands matter to Tribunal for determining classification of wafers

Excise & Customs : Where Tribunal had not examined issues : (a) whether Chekkers Choco wafers contained chocolate or not; and (b) whether cocoa/chocolate 'sandwiched between wafers' would amount to 'contained in wafers', matter was remanded back for consideration afresh

No notice required to recover refund which was granted by AO and reversed by appellate authority

Service Tax/Excise/Customs : Recovery of refunds granted by adjudicating authority and reversed by appellate authority, does not amount to recovery of 'erroneous refund' as per section 11A; hence, no show-cause notice is required therefor

CBDT focuses on critical recovery area of outstanding tax; raises limit for monitoring of dossier ca

IT/ILT : Section 268A Of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 – Filing Of Appeal Or Application For Reference By Income-Tax Authority – Monitoring Of Dossier Cases – Re-Fixation Of Monetary Limits For Various Income-Tax Authorities

No reassessment on basis of audit objection without independent opinion of AO that income had escape

IT : Assessing Officer could not initiate reassessment proceedings merely on basis of objection raised by audit party to effect that assessee had been granted higher rate of depreciation in respect of earth moving machinery

Inputs sent to affiliate to generate electricity were eligible for credit as electricity was used in

Cenvat Credit : Electricity generation is integral part of process of manufacture; hence, inputs/pet-coke sent to sister unit for generation of electricity would be eligible for input credit, if resultant electricity is used for manufacture of final product

SEBI enhances disclosure requirement for NBFCs on issuance of debt securities

SEBI : Disclosures to be made by NBFCs in offer documents for public issue of debt securities under Sebi (issue and listing of debt securities) regulations, 2008

Goods taxable at 4% shall now be taxable at 5% under Dadra and Nagar Haveli VAT

VAT /INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Dadra And Nagar Haveli Value Added Tax (Amendment) Regulations, 2015 – Amendment In Regulation 4

Royalty paid to buyer for use of its brand name can't be deemed as additional consideration

Central Excise : Royalty paid by seller to buyer for use of buyer's brand does not amount to 'additional consideration', as it does not flow from buyer to seller; hence, same is not includible in transaction value

No penalty due to clerical mistake of showing loan repayment in cash instead of through cheque

IT : Where assessee-society repaid loan by account payee cheque but due to clerical mistake it was wrongly shown as cash payment, as there was no violation of section 269T, penal provision of section 271E would not be attracted

Woofers aren't part of TV; to be valued separately - Supreme Court

Central Excise : Where it was found that woofers were not part of Colour TV and were mere accessories, they were to be valued separately from Colour-TV; further, MRP-based assessment applicable to Colour-TV would not apply to 'woofers'

Goods manufactured by job-worker include transport and unloading of inputs at its premises

Excise & Customs : Transport of inputs from principal manufacturer to job-worker and unloading of said inputs at job-worker's premises (whether by own labour or hired labour) is includible in value of goods manufactured by job-worker

In case of trader sec. 68 and sec. 69C would be applicable if he failed to prove genuineness of cred

IT : In case of a trader section 68 as well as section 69C would be squarely applicable to sundry creditors, because credit purchases are nothing but expenditure and if sundry credits are not proved by assessee addition can be made by Assessing Officer by resorting to section 69C

ITAT imports 'make available' clause from India-Portugal DTAA by applying MFN clause of India-Sweden

IT/ILT : Assessee, a resident of Sweden, can claim benefit of conditions imposed for bringing to tax managerial fees in treaty between India and Portugal at lower rate on basis of protocol to DTAA between India and Sweden on principle of most favoured nation (MFN)

IRDA notifies registration norms for corporate agents; allows them to sell policies of upto 3 insure

INSURANCE/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : IRDAI (Registration Of Corporate Agents) Regulations, 2015

Accused held guilty of cheque dishonouring as complainant produced ledger books to show existence of

Negotiable Instruments Act : Where complainant produced ledger books to prove transaction by which liability of accused arose, complainant had discharged its initial burden to prove guilt of accused under section 138 on dishonour of cheque issued in discharge of that liability

'Facility Sharing Agreements' between Group Cos. at ALP won't be treated as 'real estate business' u

FDI/FEMA/ILT : Clarification On Fdi Policy On Facility Sharing Arrangements Between Group Companies

Now private companies can take loan from relatives of its directors

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/AAA/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Acceptance Of Deposits) Second Amendment Rules, 2015 – Amendment In Rules 2 & 3

Excise Act doesn't contain any provision for proceeding against legal heir of deceased

Excise & Customs : In absence of any machinery provisions to assess and collect tax from a deceased person/dissolved firm, all proceedings against such deceased person/dissolved firm abate and therefore, proceedings cannot be continued against legal representatives

No reassessment to disallow additional depreciation without any failure of assessee to disclose mate

IT: Where claim of additional depreciation had been allowed during course of scrutiny assessment after verification of all details, in absence of any failure on part of petitioner, Assessing Officer could not have assumed valid jurisdiction to reopen assessment

Receipt of advance from Co. wasn't deemed dividend as money lending was substantial part of its busi

IT : Where assessee, holding 51 per cent shares in a company, obtained loan from its reserves and surplus, since out of total funds available with said company, more than 75 per cent were deployed in loans and advances, amount received by assessee could not be considered as deemed dividend because of exclusion by item (ii) to section 2(22)(e)

Payment under Voluntary Retirement Scheme is revenue exp.

IT: Where assessee, a manufacturer of paper, incurred expenditure on ucalyptus tree plantation, pre-plantation expenditure incurred by assessee was allowable as revenue expenditure

Goa VAT dealers who remained unassessed beyond limitation period can apply to Commissioner for refun

VAT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Goa Value Added Tax (Eighth Amendment) Act, 2015 – Amendment In Section 29

SEZ units asked to make payment to suppliers from Foreign Currency a/c; failure would invite liabili

SEZ : Closure of advance authorization license issued as per para 4.16(a) of ftp, pending for want of payment to be received from foreign currency account

Textile Ind Seeks Shield Against Chinese Dumping

On the heels of top guns of India Inc demanding protection for the textile industry from cheap Chinese imports, textile manufacturers and associations have warned that the domestic industry would be extinct if dumping is not countered.

The industry claims that as much as 60 per cent of dumping happens from China, and unofficial estimate peg the size of this trade varying between 20 and 40 per cent of the $105-billion domestic textile industry.

"If the present level of dumping continues unchecked, the domestic textile industry will be extinct over the next few years," Chairman for Policy, Apparel Export Promotion Council Premal Udani said.

He further said when China finds that shipments through one channel has reached the official limits, it starts exporting the same goods to other countries like Hong Kong, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Cambodia for onward shipping to India to avoid customs inspections.

The impact of increasing dumping by Chinese is also felt by the largest textile manufacturers like Birla Cellulose, Century, and other textile mills among others. Indonesian and Chinese viscose yarns are being imported at nearly 25 per cent cheaper rate than domestic prices.

While import price is around Rs 150 a kg CIF, domestic prices are around Rs 200 a kg. Also, nearly 80 per cent of the fabric being imported into the country is from China, CMO, Birla Cellulose Rajeev Gopal, which is the largest viscose staple fibre (VSF) producer in the world, said. 

The government should provide a level-playing field to the textile industry across the value-chain by providing safe-guard measures against cheap imports. It should also sign FTAs with consuming markets like Europe, the US etc with preferential treatment to textile products to provide competitive advantage to Indian exports and be at par with countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Vietnam, Gopal said.

He also said many textile units have been shut in Bhinwandi area in Maharashtra and Surat in Gujarat, leading to huge loss of jobs. Clothing Manufacturers Association of India President Rahul Mehta said for the Rs 2-trillion ready-mades industry, the bigger issue is unofficial sale of second-hand garments through the northeastern borders as well as through SEZs like Kandla.

Source:thehansindia.com

Even job worker is entitled for sec. 80-IB benefit

IT : Where assessee carried on three kinds of activities, viz., manufacturing of plastic bags, trading and carrying out job work for manufacturing of plastic bags and polypropylene sheets for others, it was entitled for deduction under section 80-IB in respect of income derived from job work activity

Dumping Duty Only Short-Term Safeguard For Steel Firms

With the much-talked about 20 per cent safeguard duty on imported steel finally coming into force, it brings welcome relief for the steel sector, which has been struggling due to cheap imports from China and countries with which India has free trade agreements.

While the government has reacted with remarkable speed in response to an application from domestic steel producers in June, the safeguard duty on hot-rolled coils (HRC) will benefit the integrated steel producers (ISPs) only in the short term as it is likely to be applicable only for 200 days.

Earlier a government panel comprising commerce, steel and revenue secretaries had approved imposition of 20 per cent safeguard duty on imports of specific steel products from China, Japan and Korea for 200 days.Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday announced the government’s decision to impose a 20 per cent safeguard duty on steel imports with immediate effect. The duty on specific steel products will be valid for 200 days.

This is perhaps the first time in nearly two decades that the government is taking a series of moves to ‘protect’ the domestic steel industry since it was liberalised in the early 1990s.The safeguard duty is superior to the import duty since it is applicable to all nations unlike the import duty which excludes countries falling under free trade agreements. That said, the higher safeguard duty would benefit the ISPs, but negatively impact the companies involved in cold rolling and annealing of HR coils.

However, the players could circumvent this by importing HRC with some value addition. India’s import of iron and steel rose 58 per cent during April-June 2015, making it the country’s sixth-largest import during this period. The sector’s contribution to stressed advances stood at 10.2 per cent of the total advances at end-December 2014 and is among the top five sectors with stressed loans in the system. The Reserve Bank of India in its latest financial stability report highlighted that five out of the top 10 private steel producing companies are under severe stress.

These companies are struggling with delayed implementation of projects due to delays in land acquisition and environmental clearances among other factors.Steel imports have increased primarily from China, Korea and Japan. While the imposition of import duty of 12.5% applies to China, it does not apply to Korea and Japan, with which India has bilateral free trade pacts.

Source:livemint.com

Amended proviso to sec. 2(15) is prospective; town development activities are general public utility

IT : The proviso to Section 2(15) as substituted by the Finance Act, 2015 is applicable with prospective effect. Thus, even post insertion of such proviso but prior to April 1, 2016 activities of trade, commerce, business, etc, are not excluded from scope of charitable purpose which are in the course of actual carrying out of advancement of any other object of general public if aggregate receipts from such activity do not exceed 20% of total receipt of trust

Exemption available for works contract under repealed Sales Tax Act couldn't be carried under New VA

CST & VAT: Andhra Pradesh VAT - Where State Government of Andhra Pradesh had awarded a works contract to one 'K' for construction of a port and 'K' had entrusted work of construction to assessee, latter was rightly subjected to tax on turnover relating to works contract executed for 'K'

Amalgamation reserve couldn't be treated as benefit arising from business or profession under sec. 2

IT: Where four companies amalgamated with assessee-company, amalgamation reserve being difference in value of share capital of said companies prior and post amalgamation, coming into existence consequent to said merger could not be regarded as 'profit and gains from business profession' under section 28(iv)

Soyabean Oil Imports Touch All-Time High Of 4.06 Lt In Aug

India's soyabean oil imports have touched an all-time high of 4.06 lakh tonnes (LT) in August and the total inward shipment of vegetable oil in the same month has increased by 3 per cent to 13.74 LT.

"The import of soyabean oil is highest ever since it was permitted by the government in 1994. The inward shipments of soyabean oil have gone up mainly due to decline in its prices by USD 200 per tonne in last one year," Solvent Extractors Association (SEA) Executive Director B V Mehta told PTI.

Soyabean oil, which was costing USD 897 per tonne in August last year declined to USD 699 per tonne in the same month this year, he added.

The total import of vegetable oils during August 2015 is reported at 13.74 LT compared with 13.33 LT in the same month last year, Mumbai-based industry body said in a statement. Out of the total vegetable oil imported by the country in August, edible oil was 13.64 LT and non-edible oil was 9,477 tonnes.

The overall import of vegetable oils during November- August period rose by 23 per cent to 117.25 LT as against 95.25 LT in the same period last year.

Expressing concerns over the sharp rise in imports, SEA said: "India is being used as a dumping ground for excessive supply of edible oils in the world market."

"Excessive import has put tremendous pressure on the local prices, which are at a level where Indian oilseeds growing farmers are in distress and losing interest in oilseed crop," it added.

The country's dependence on imported oil has further increased to nearly 70 per cent, an alarming situation for the country's food security, it added.

India meets 60 per cent of its annual vegetable oil demand of 17-18 MT via imports. Palm oils make up over 70 per cent of the country's total vegetable oil imports.

Source:business-standard.com

FEMA provisions inserted by Finance Act, 2015 come into force wef. Sep 9, 2015

FEMA/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : section 138 of the finance act, 2015 – amendments in foreign exchange management act, 1999 – notified date on which provisions of clause (b) of said section, sections 140, 141, 142 and clause (ii) of section 143 of the foreign exchange management act, 1999 to come into force

Modifications In Electronic And Physical Iecs Will Now Be Done Online: Dgft

The modifications in the Electronics Importer Exporter Codes (IECs) as well as physical IECs can now be carried online by paying a fee of Rs 200 from September 21, Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has said.
 
DGFT, on Monday, said in a public notice, “Modifications in Electronic IECs as well as physical IECs will now be carried out online. Applicants can seek modifications in their e-IEC’s/ IEC’s by paying a fee of Rs 200 online from the 21st of September, 2015.”
 
The new formats of online application form for issue/modification in IEC was notified vide Public Notice on November 27, 2014. Subsequently online application for IEC was operationalised with effect from February 1, 2015.
 
“Now, in exercise of powers conferred under paragraph 2.4 of the Foreign Trade Policy (2009-2014), the Director General of Foreign Trade hereby notifies operationalization of modification in e-IEC’s as well as the IEC’s issued in physical format from the 21st of September, 2015,” it said.
 
Applicants seeking modification in their IEC’s may log on to dgft.nic.in and click on Importer Exporter Code (IEC) under Quick Links and select “Modify your IEC” to amend their e-IEC’s and IEC’s in physical format. Henceforth all modifications in e-IEC’s/ IEC’s would be done online only, the notification added.

Source:knnindia.co.in

Rupee Opens Flat At 66.35 Per Dollar

The Indian rupee has opened marginally lower at 66.35 per dollar on Tuesday against previous day's close of 66.33.

Ashutosh Raina of HDFC Bank said, "The market is keenly awaiting the outcome of FOMC meeting later this week. Markets expect Fed to keep rates on hold in this meeting in the face of global growth concerns."

"The USD-INR pair continues to trade in the 66-66.50/dollar range and should continue to trade this range till some clarity on policy action from central banks," he added. The dollar remained close to a three-week low against a basket of major currencies ahead of this week's Federal Reserve meeting.

Source:moneycontrol.com

 

Sum received under JDA for identifying purchaser for land owner was taxable on due basis and not as

IT : Where assessee, a real estate company, received certain sum for identifying purchaser for third party and was following mercantile system of accounting, sum received by it would be taxable in current year and not when project would be complete

Salary and interest paid to partners are deductible even if income is estimated by AO on basis of Ne

IT : Where assessment was done under section 145, normal deductions were to be allowed; Assessing Officer could not deny deductions of salaries to partners and interest on financial, charges to assessee firm on ground that said exercise was akin to one under section 44AD under which separate deductions provided for in sections 30 to 38 are impermissible

Transaction occasioning movement of goods from one State to another is inter-State sale under CST Ac

CST & VAT : Central Sales Tax - Where assessee operated rice mill at Yanam in Union Territory of Pondicherry and it in accordance with a memo issued by Government of Andhra Pradesh purchased paddy within State of Andhra Pradesh, transported it to its rice mill at Yanam, milled paddy in its rice mill and supplied prescribed percentage of levy rice to FCI, Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, sale of rice had taken place in course of inter-State trade and commerce

IRDA notifies norms for minimum limits of annuities & other benefits under life insurance policies

INSURANCE/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : IRDAI (Minimum Limits For Annuities And Other Benefits) Regulations, 2015

Sum received for maintenance services linked to supply of software isn't taxable as royalty

IT/ILT : Consideration received by assessee for supply of 'contact solutions' used for better management customer interaction, comprising of sale of hardware alongwith license of embedded software to end user is not royalty under article 12 of DTAA between India and USA

Book entry doesn't create income but recognizes it; income doesn't arise merely on reversal of wrong

IT : Where assessee credited her capital account with amount of sundry creditors written back but failed to furnish anything except name of parties and even reason for write back was not stated, impugned sum was assessed as income from other sources under section 56

Now Commissioner can select cases for reassessment within 3 calendar years under Chhattisgarh VAT

VAT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Chhatisgarh Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act, 2015 – Amendment In Section 21

AO couldn't raise higher TDS demand due to non-furnishing of PAN by NRs while issuing sec. 200A inti

IT/ILT : Where assessee made royalty payments to non-residents, since benefit of DTAA was available to said recipients, their TDS liability could not be more than rate prescribed under DTAA or Act whichever was lower

Pick and drop facility extended to employees is eligible for credit an input service

Cenvat Credit : Transport/Rent-a-cab services for transporting staff to factory and return back to their place of residence, is eligible for credit as input service; however, credit would not be allowed up to extent cost is borne by employee

FEMA provisions inserted by Finance Act, 2015 comes into force wef Sep 9, 2015

FEMA/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : section 138 of the finance act, 2015 – amendments in foreign exchange management act, 1999 – notified date on which provisions of clause (b) of said section, sections 140, 141, 142 and clause (ii) of section 143 of the foreign exchange management act, 1999 to come into force

Book entry don't create income but recognizes it; income doesn't arise merely on reversal of wrong e

IT : Where assessee credited her capital account with amount of sundry creditors written back but failed to furnish anything except name of parties and even reason for write back was not stated, impugned sum was assessed as income from other sources under section 56

Dispatching notice intentionally at incorrect address couldn't be deemed as valid service of notice

Excise & Customs : Where department was aware of assessee's correct address as per certificate of registration, dispatching notice/order at different/incorrect address does not amount to 'service' thereof; therefore, entire proceedings are liable to be set aside for violation of principles of natural justice

Forex loss in forward contract isn't speculative as contract is made to hedge loss in export-import

IT : Foreign exchange loss incurred by assessee on account of entering into forward contracts with banks for purpose of hedging loss in connection with its import/export business has to be regarded as business loss subject to condition that maturity of hedge does not exceed maturity of underlying transaction

Ponds specially designed for breeding of prawns to be treated as plant for depreciation purposes

IT: Ponds which were specially designed for rearing/breeding of the prawns have to be treated as tools of the business of the assessee and the depreciation was admissible on these at the rates applicable to plant and machinery

Imported goods eligible for SAD exemption only if VAT is leviable thereon: Apex Court

Customs : If goods are tax-free and not chargeable to sales-tax on their resale by importer, the said goods cannot be exempted from Special Additional Duty (SAD) of customs or special CVD at time of import

Order of AO wasn't erroneous if he had taken net profit rate of contractor above normal rate after s

IT: In case of civil sub-contract normal profit rate was about 5 per cent; where Assessing Officer worked out same to be 6.4 per cent in assessee's case, after scrutiny, said order could not be regarded as erroneous

India: Pomegranate Exports May Hit Record 60K Tonne

Maharashtra is all set to export record 40,000 to 60,000 tonne of pomegranates in the coming season beginning November. In 2014-15 season, the state had exported a record 40,000 tonne of pomegranate, an increase of nearly 33% compared to the previous season.

Prices have picked up after a poor start and doubled from R40-50 per kg to R100 per kg for farmers, said Prabhakar Chandane, chairman, Maharashtra Pomegranate Growers Research Association.

While the deficient monsoon has affected other crops, for pomegranates, less rains mean lesser possibility of fungal infections, he pointed out. Cultivation of pomegranates is on the rise not only in the state but also across the country, Chandane said.

In addition to Maharashtra, pomegranates are now being cultivated in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. Around 1.25-1.3 tonnes of production is expected in the coming season.

While the government quotes figures of 9 million hectares, the association says the crop is cultivated on some 14 million hectares, 1.5 times more than the earlier acreage, he said.

Maharashtra contributes 90% to the country’s total pomegranate production. The second season of harvesting is to come up in January-February period. The first season for the crop comes up in the July to September period.

Normally, the export season begins in November every year and is completed by March. However, the season extended up to April this year, Chandane said.

For exports, West Asia continues to remain one of the biggest markets for India, Chandane said. This year, India also exported pomegranates to countries such as Bangladesh, Bahrain, Sri Lanka and the Netherlands.

Although Russia emerged as a new market last year, traders are not keen to send products there owing to payment issues in the previous year, Chandane said. The UK, the UAE, the Netherlands, Egypt, Turkey, Bahrain and Kuwait are other important markets for the fruit.

In addition to increased acreage, new markets are also opening up, he said. In all likelihood markets in the US are also expected to open up next year.

Source:freshplaza.com

Lease rentals paid to start a new project wasn't preoperative exp. if such project formed part of ex

IT : Where a project was not a new business of assessee but was part and parcel of same business, lease rent expenses and hire purchase charges in respect of said project was allowable as revenue expenditure

Bangladesh Rice Farmers Face Double Whammy With Lower Prices And Higher Supplies

Bangladesh rice farmers are not happy despite the country achieving record 34.708 million tons production (milled basis) in FY 2014-15 (July - June) due to prevailing low prices, according to local sources.

They are the current prices are not even sufficient to cover their production costs. Most of the farmers are receiving Tk 460 per 40 kilograms (around $145 per ton) for hybrid and high-yielding varieties, about 20% lesser than the production costs.

Farmers have been complaining of lower prices since April this year due to increased local production and higher imports from India. The country reportedly imported about 1.45 million tons of rice during FY 2014-15, about four times more higher than in 2013-14, despite a record production due to prevailing low global rice prices, according to the Ministry of Food. They told local sources that the total availability of rice has crossed the local consumption demand of around 3 million tons and has put a downward pressure on prices.

Also farmers and traders are mainly concerned that increased imports have lowered demand for local rice further pushing down the prices. Average price of coarse rice currently stands at around Tk 30-34 per kilogram (around $377-$428 per ton), compared to around Tk 32-37 per kilogram (around $402-$465 per ton) in April this year and around Tk 35-38 per kilogram (around $440-$477 per ton) during the same time last year, according to data from Trading Corporation of Bangladesh.

They noted that the imposition of 10% duty on rice imports did not provide the desired effect as the Indian suppliers lowered their rates. They are expecting the current floods that are affecting some rice growing areas to push up the prices to some extent.

Floods that are a result of heavy rains have damaged more that 260,000 hectares of Aman crop land, local sources quoted the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE). Farmers are reportedly encouraged to grow flood-tolerant rice varieties such as BRRI dhan51, BRRI dhan52, BINA dhan11 and BINA dhan12 to ensure that the production is not impacted.

USDA estimates Bangladesh’s MY 2015-16 (July 2015 – June 2016) milled rice production at around 35 million tons, slightly up from an estimated 34.5 million tons in MY 2014-15. It estimates Bangladesh to import around 1.2 million tons of rice in 2015.   

Source:- Oryza.com

 

Imported Pulses To Arrive In India From Sept. 23

At the second meeting of the Inter Ministerial Committee on Prices and Availability of essential food items here on Monday and it was appraised that 2500 MT of the imported Tur will arrive in three tranches at Chennai Port and similar quantity of around 2500 MT of Tur will arrive in four tranches beginning from 23rd September, 2015.

The entire consignment of 5000 MT of Tur would be received at the two Ports by 20th October, 2015. To further improve the availability, import of additional 5000 MT of Tur has also been approved. MMTC has already floated a tender of procurement of Tur on 11th September, 2015 with the bid opening date of 21st September, 2015.

With respect to Urad MMTC indicated that 5000 MT of Urad from Myanmar will be received at the Chennai and JNPT. Both the port will received around 2500 MT each by 20th October, 2015.

As regards imports of Onion MMTC informed that about 1000 MT is expected by 1st week of October, 2015 and another 1000 MT by 2nd & 3rd week of October, 2015 at JNPT, Mumbai. As directed by Union Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution in the review meeting held on 10th September, 2015 MMTC have also floated a tender for import of 1000 MT of onion on 11th September, 2015 and the bid would be opened on 18th September, 2015.

These imports are expected to improve the availability of pulses and onion and moderate their prices.

Source:business-standard.com

Depreciation includes depletion of natural resources; deductible for computing book

IT : Where voting power of assessee company had been unconditionally acquired by company in which public is substantially interested, assessee company would become a company in which public was substantially interested; assessee-company's claim of brought forward losses would be allowed under section 79

India To Impose Uniform Import Duty On Some Steel As Imports Surge

India will soon impose a 20 percent import tax on some hot-rolled steel products for 200 days, two sources said on Monday, as the government investigates a threat to domestic companies from rising supplies from China, Japan, South Korea and Russia.

The products together accounted for more than half of the 5.5 million tonnes of steel imported last fiscal year into India, the world's only major growing market at a time when top consumer and seller China is slowing.

Struggling to compete due to higher borrowing and raw material costs, Indian steel companies had successfully lobbied to get duties on some products raised to 12.5 percent and quality checks strengthened in recent months.

But the duties did not apply to Japan and South Korea, countries with which India has free trade agreements, prompting the companies to seek a safeguard duty that applies to all.

An Indian steel company executive, who declined to be named, said the so-called safeguard duty would not completely halt imports of the products but prevent foreign suppliers from "predatory pricing" when local production is rising.

Acting on a complaint from Steel Authority of India (SAIL), JSW Steel and Essar Steel, the Directorate General of Safeguards said last week any delay in implementing the duty would cause such damage to the local industry that would be "difficult to repair". (bit.ly/1Oa7c7e)

The government has accepted its recommendation and a notification on a temporary duty for hot-rolled flat products of non-alloy and other alloy steel in coils of a width of 600 mm or more would come out soon, said the sources aware of the matter but who are not authorised to talk to the media.

News agency NewsRise quoted two senior finance ministry officials to say a duty may be announced as early as Monday. Reports of the duty pushed up shares of SAIL, JSW, Tata Steel, Jindal Steel and Power and Bhushan Steel.

Imports made up 5 percent of the country's total production of the under-investigation steel products in the year to end-March 31, 2014. But they have increased since then and are on course to hit 13 percent this fiscal year, or 3.4 million tonnes, according to the companies that sought the duty.

Source:in.reuters.com

Government To Resurrect Country's Dormant Gold Mining Industry

The ministry of mines has planned to resurrect India's dormant gold mining industry. "We're going to auction threefour gold mines in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in two-three months. With amendment of the Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation (MMDR) Act, we are pursuing with the states to move ahead with these auctions," Union Mines Secretary Balvinder Kumar told Mail Today.

India is the world's leading importer and consumer of gold but policy handicaps and inadequate investments and technology mean vast gold ore reserves have largely remained unexplored. For example, despite geological similarity with India, Australia mines 280 tonnes of gold a year. An increase in gold production will cut India's rising gold import bill and boost economy.

"Gold mining in India is negligible. Kolar Gold Fields was our main project but that's been defunct for 14 years now. We're trying to revive it, but the idea also is to tap unexplored sites," Kumar said.

India's gold production dropped 8 per cent to 1.43 tonne in 2014-15 compared to 1.56 tonne in 2013-14 financial year. Gold production from Hutti Gold Mines Co. in Karnataka and Manmohan Industries in Jharkhand was 1.43 tonne in 2014-15 as against 1.56 tonne. In 2014-14, gold import stood at 782 tonnes, while for 2013-14 it was 661.71 tonnes.

Steps such as second-phase mine construction at Hutti gold mines have been taken for increasing the production of metal. At the Hira-Buddini and Uti gold mine, the second phase of mining by shaft sinking and mine development is in process.

Overall, the 12 mineral producing states will put 82 mining blocks containing various minerals for auctioning by October-November this year, Kumar said. The entire process will take 2-3 months.

Source:indiatoday.intoday.in

Rupee Trading Strong At 66.31 On Fresh Dollar Selling, Positive Economic Data

The rupee was trading strong at 66.31 against the dollar in the evening session on fresh dollar selling by banks and exporters amid positive economic data.

Forex dealers said that besides dollar selling, a firm domestic equity market and weakness of the dollar against other currencies supported the rupee.

The dollar inched lower with investors sticking to the sidelines as the countdown begins on whether the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade.

The euro edged up 0.1 per cent to $1.1350, holding on to last week's 1.8 percent gain. The dollar eased 0.1 per cent to 120.42 yen.

Against a basket of six major currencies, the dollar eased 0.1 per cent to 95.067. The rupee opened strong by 14 paise to 66.40 against the dollar in early trade at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market today.

It further strengthened to 66.30 before being quoted at 66.31 at 4.10 pm local time. The domestic currency moved in a range of 66.49 and 66.30 in the evening trade.

On Friday, the rupee had lost 11 paise at 66.54 against the US dollar on sustained demand for the American currency from banks and importers amid a higher greenback overseas. Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex ended higher by 246.49 points or 0.96 per cent at 25,856.70.

Source:thehindubusinessline.com

No sales tax on oil products sold to distributors, as Oil Co. hadn't purchased substantial part from

CST & VAT : Assam VAT - Where assessee purchased petroleum products from IOC and thereafter sold it to dealers and sale price collected from dealers was above 40 per cent of sale price paid to IOC, since quantity of goods sold to assessee by IOC was only 4.5 per cent of its total production, sale effected by assessee did not amount to a first sale under section 8 and was not taxable

Payer can't escape TDS liability on basis of Form 15G if amount of interest exceeds basic exemption

IT : Payer of interest cannot justify non-deduction of tax at source by taking shelter of ultimate tax effects of payee

Credit availed as a service provider can be used to pay excise duty payable as manufacturer

Cenvat Credit : Rule 3 does not stipulate maintaining separate account as a manufacturer and as a service provider; hence, credit availed as a service provider can be used to pay excise duty payable as manufacturer and vice versa

Payment made to sub-contractors disallowed as vouchers issued to them were suspicious in nature

IT : Where Commissioner (Appeals) disallowed payments made to sub-contractors on ground that vouchers issued to them were highly suspicious in nature and even nature of work did not require involvement of sub-contractor, Tribunal could not set aside said order, particularly when none of major points highlighted by Commissioner (Appeals) was answered

AO to rectify his order as he failed to consider an amendment to which retro-effect was given by HC

IT : Where Assessing Officer made disallowance under section 40(a)(ia) for not depositing tax deducted at source within time stipulated under section 200(1) but subsequently section 40(a)(ia) was amended providing to make such disallowance only in case of not depositing tax deducted before due date specified under section 139(1) and such amendment was held to be retrospective by jurisdictional High Court, Assessing Officer should have rectified his order by deleting impugned disallowance

Dept. couldn't forfeit taxes collected by 'Indian Oil' on petrol when it was a taxable commodity

CST & VAT : Assam VAT - Where assessee purchased oil products from two oil companies after payment of tax and sold same to dealers in Assam and collected taxes from them, since oil companies were not specified oil companies at that time and goods were not exempted goods, levy of penalty was bad in law

Running a Pre-School is a charitable activity for getting registration as trust

IT: Where assessee-trust was only running a pre-school by collecting fees for imparting education to children, assessee's main objects were covered by charitable purposes 'education' under section 2(15) and it was entitled for registration under section 12AA

Sec. 54F benefit available on investment in house within 3 years of transfer even if house is regist

IT: Whether where investment in construction of new building is made within three years of sale of property, benefit of section 54 is to be given; question of registration of document does not arise

CESTAT, Allahabad shall begin hearing of cases w.e.f. Oct 10, 2015

EXCISE : Statuts Of Appeals/Applications Arising From Territories Of State Of Uttar Pradesh Listed On Board From 1-9-2015

SCN can be waived if tax and penalty are paid before issuance of SCN; CBEC clarifies

EXCISE : Finance Act, 1994 – Clarification Regarding Provisions Of Sections 73, 76 And 78 Of The Finance Act, 1994 And Section 11c Of The Central Excise Act, 1944 After Amendments Made By Finance Act, 2015

Registration fee to file appeal at CESTAT, Allahabad shall be paid in name of Asst. Registrar, CESTA

EXCISE : Registration Fee Payable For Appeal/Applications For Filing At Regional Bench, Allahabad

CESTAT prescribes new numbering system for matters before different CESTAT benches

EXCISE : New Numbering Systems Proposed For Causes Initiated And Orders Issued By Different Benches Of Cestat

Director's plea to discharge her from alleged violation of CIS norms rejected as she could prove inn

SEBI: Where petitioner director sought for discharge from complaint case filed by SEBI against company for violation of CIS Regulations, petitioner's application was to be rejected as petitioner would get opportunity at trial for proving that she was not concerned with affairs of company at time of alleged offence

ITAT directs AO to rework ALP as it wasn't clear whether assessee was testing chips or developing so

IT/ILT : Where it was not apparent from records as to whether assessee was engaged in software development or simply testing of chips manufactured by its parent company abroad, matter relating to determination of ALP was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

Prior to 1-4-2011, taking land on lease and setting-up factory and plant thereon were input services

Cenvat Credit : Prior to 1-4-2011, lease rental paid for taking land on lease and construction services availed to get factory/plant constructed/erected thereon, are eligible for input service credit

Period of holding is to be computed from date of 'Agreement for sale' if it confers right in immovab

IT : Where 'agreement for sale' conferred rights in immovable property and such rights were capable of being enforced, order under section 263 was bad in law

Sum paid to purchase software isn't royalty as there is no transfer of copyright or patent of softwa

IT/ILT : Where assessee was only a reseller of software products of a non-resident company in India, since transaction in question was in nature of trade, payment made by assessee to non-resident towards purchase of products did not fall within purview of royalty under section 9(1)(vi)

Defamation case against editors can't be used to negate genuine criticism, rules High Court

SEBI : Where plaintiff NSE filed an application for injunction in a defamation action against defendants, editors of journal or website moneylife-in, on ground that article published by journal accused NSE of actively permitting illicit trading advantages being afforded to a select few using high-end technology, it was held that, a defamation action should neither be allowed to be used to negate or stifle genuine criticism, nor should it be allowed to choke a fair warning to public if its