image for representative purposes
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty advanced in early trade on Wednesday (January 29, 2025) amid a rally in global peers and buying in IT stocks.

The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex rose 355.87 points to 76,257.28 in early trade. The NSE Nifty went up by 92.8 points to 23,050.05.

From the 30-share blue-chip pack, Infosys, Zomato, Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Steel, Tata Motors and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the biggest gainers.

Hindustan Unilever, Nestle, ITC and Asian Paints were among the laggards.

In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo were trading in the positive territory. Markets in Shanghai and Hong Kong were closed due to holidays.

U.S. markets ended higher on Tuesday (January 28, 2025).

“The recovery in the market witnessed on Tuesday (January 28, 2025) can continue with resilience in fairly priced financials. However, a sharp rally is unlikely since FIIs will sell at higher levels.

“The market will be looking forward to positive cues in the Budget. The Fed decision is unlikely to influence the market since no change in policy is expected from this meeting,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹4,920.69 crore on Tuesday (January 28, 2025), according to exchange data.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.15% to $77.37 a barrel.

“The focus is now on the Federal Reserve’s rate decision and the upcoming Union Budget 2025, where measures to boost consumption and growth are expected,” Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

On Tuesday (January 28, 2025), the BSE benchmark Sensex climbed 535.24 points or 0.71% to settle at 75,901.41. The Nifty went up by 128.10 points or 0.56% to 22,957.25.

Image for representative purposes only
| Photo Credit: PAUL NORONHA

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied for the third session on the trot, helped by a rally in global markets after lower-than-expected consumer inflation in the U.S. ignited hopes of more rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

The 30-share BSE index climbed 318.74 points or 0.42% to revisit 77,000 level at 77,042.82. During the day, it jumped 595.42 points or 0.77% to 77,319.50.

On the similar lines, the NSE Nifty rallied 98.60 points or 0.42% to 23,311.80.

“Benchmark indices continued to trade in the positive, albeit off highs, driven by positive investor sentiment following mild U.S. inflation data, which raised hopes for a potential rate cut by the Federal Reserve.”

“Additionally, favourable developments in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and a reduced trade deficit further boosted the market’s upward movement. However, weak economic growth data from the UK dampened some of this optimism,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.

From the 30-share blue-chip pack, Adani Ports, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank, NTPC, Maruti, Reliance Industries and Axis Bank were the biggest gainers.

In contrast, HCL Tech, Nestle, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Tata Consultancy Services were among the laggards.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong settled in the positive territory.

Equity markets in Europe were quoting higher. US markets rallied on Wednesday (January 15, 2025).

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹4,533.49 crore on Wednesday (January 15, 2025), according to exchange data.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.18% to $81.88 a barrel.

In the previous session, the BSE benchmark rose 224.45 points or 0.29% to settle at 76,724.08 on Wednesday (January 15, 2025). The Nifty advanced 37.15 points or 0.16% to 23,213.20.

An Indian startup founder’s story of how he went from generating a revenue of Rs 20 lakh per day to almost losing everything is going viral on social media. Shared by Grapevine founder Saumil Tripathi on X (formerly Twitter), the story shows how e-commerce giant Amazon capitalised on the founder’s business model and managed to scale it, eventually driving him out of the marketplace.

“I went from selling 20L of products per day to watching my generational wealth dream crumble”. An e-commerce founder shared the story of their rise and fall on Amazon! [sic],” read the post by Mr Tripathi on X.

As per the unnamed founder, he started a home organiser company in 2017 which quickly began to provide incredible returns.

“I was on AliExpress, looking for budget-friendly storage ideas for my own apartment-think suction-cup shelves, collapsible bins, drawers,” the entrepreneur shared in his post, adding that he realised that these products were way more expensive on Amazon.

After spending Rs 2.5 lakh initially to buy Chinese products and quickly reselling them in India, the entrepreneur expanded the business by stockpiling the inventory. He even went to Chinese factories to directly source the product which increased his profit margins.

The business was booming and soon Amazon approached the founder and offered him a “nine-figure” buyout. “They pitched me a collaboration or potential acquisition, hinting that my brand complemented their private label push,” the post read further.

However, the startup declined the offer and it was to be the beginning of the end. Seeing the success of the products, Amazon introduced its own private-label brand, Solimo. With eerily similar products but at significantly lower prices, Solimo began to dominate search results on Amazon, pushing the entrepreneur’s offerings off the virtual shelves.

The OP’s top-selling items, once leaders in their category, found themselves overshadowed by Amazon’s strategic move. If he tried to reduce the prices, Amazon slashed the margins further until the OP was forced to clear the inventory on loss.

“Today, that business is practically gone, undone by Amazon’s move into private labels. I’m not broke or working a 9-5, but the potential for creating true generational wealth was ripped out from under me before it could fully materialise. This is my cautionary tale,” he said.

“I went from selling 20L of products per day to watching my generational-wealth dream crumble”

An e-commerce founder shared the story of their rise and fall on Amazon! pic.twitter.com/jvZl5PNDus

— Saumil Heard It (@OnTheGrapevine) December 26, 2024

Internet reacts

As of the last update, the post had garnered 1.2 million views, nearly 7,000 likes and hundreds of comments. Most of the users expressed sympathy with the founder but others added that running a business without a unique product was always supposed to end in pain.

“This might be a tough read. But it is Biz101,” said one user, while another added: “It’s a leverage game and marketplaces have the ultimate leverage.”

A third commented: “Please don’t think that Amazon is your business partner. You spend on ads and they get your customer’s data. Once you grow big they will use your customer data and start selling themselves.

The founder signed off by cautioning up-and-coming entrepreneurs to be alert when an acquisition offer comes and also advised that developing a unique product was essential to surviving on such platforms.

File picture of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building, in Mumbai
| Photo Credit: PTI

Benchmark Sensex rose by nearly 91 points to close at a fresh lifetime high while Nifty settled above the 25,400 level for the first time supported by firm global trends ahead of the much-awaited U.S. Fed’s decision on interest rates.

Extending its record-setting spree for the second day, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 90.88 points or 0.11% to settle at a lifetime high of 83,079.66. During the day, it rose by 163.63 points or 0.19% to 83,152.41.

The NSE Nifty gained 34.80 points or 0.14% to settle at an all-time peak of 25,418.55.

Among 30 Sensex firms, Bharti Airtel, NTPC, Mahindra & Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Titan, Larsen & Toubro, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, Hindustan Unilever and Reliance Industries were the biggest gainers.

Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Adani Ports, JSW Steel, ITC and Asian Paints were the biggest laggards.

In Asian markets, Hong Kong settled with gains while Tokyo ended lower. Markets in mainland China and South Korea were closed.

European markets were trading in positive territory. The U.S. markets ended mostly higher on Monday (September 16, 2014).

“The Indian market exhibited a subtle positive momentum, driven by the anticipation of a rate cut cycle by the U.S. FED. Although a 25-bps cut is largely factored in, the market remains attuned to the FED’s comments on the health of the economy and the future trajectory of rate cuts,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Wholesale inflation fell for the second consecutive month to 1.31% in August due to cheaper vegetables, food and fuel, government data released on Tuesday showed.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹1,634.98 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.25% to $72.52 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark climbed 97.84 points or 0.12% to settle at a new record peak of 82,988.78 on Monday (September 16, 2014). The Nifty rose by 27.25 points or 0.11% to settle at 25,383.75. During the day, the benchmark hit a new intra-day record peak of 25,445.70.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to plead guilty to the U.S justice dept. File photo
| Photo Credit: AP

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will plead guilty in deal with U.S. and return to Australia

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will plead guilty to a felony charge in a deal with the U.S. Justice Department that will free him from prison and resolve a long-running legal saga that spanned multiple continents and centered on the publication of a trove of classified documents, according to court papers filed late Monday.

No talks on Teesta water sharing without involvement of Bengal Government, says Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on June 24 wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying no discussion on the Teesta river treaty should be taken up with Bangladesh without the involvement of the State Government. She emphasised that if Teesta river water was shared with Bangladesh, lakhs of people in north Bengal would be severely impacted due to inadequate availability of irrigation water.

NEET paper leak: four including 2 teachers booked in Maharashtra

The Maharashtra police have booked four persons, including two zilla parishad teachers, in connection with the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) question paper leak case. 

Kuki-Zo groups take out protests in Manipur seeking Union Territory

The Kuki-Zo tribal bodies took out rallies across the hill districts of Manipur calling for the Centre to carve out a Union Territory (UT) for the community, to end the ongoing ethnic conflict in the State. They said a UT with a legislature, as provided under Article 239A of the Constitution, was the solution to the crisis.

BJP to launch nationwide programme to mark anniversary of Emergency, ‘expose Congress authoritarianism’

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said that it would launch a nationwide programme on June 25 to mark entering the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of the Emergency in 1975, to “expose” what it termed the “Congress party’s authoritarianism” and “disregard for the Constitution”.

Labour will reset partnership with India, says Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy

Days before the U.K.’s general election, the opposition Labour Party’s shadow Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, reiterated that his party would reset its relationship with India. Mr Lammy is all but certain to be the country’s next Foreign Secretary, given that Labour is most likely — as per polls — to form the next U.K. government after the country’s July 4 elections.

A fire at a lithium battery factory in South Korea kills 22 mostly Chinese migrant workers

A fire likely sparked by exploding lithium batteries swept through a manufacturing factory near South Korea’s capital on Monday, killing 22 mostly Chinese migrant workers and injuring eight, officials said.

Kremlin warns U.S. after Ukrainian strike on Crimea

The Kremlin on Monday warned the United States of “consequences” and summoned its Ambassador after Moscow said a Ukrainian strike with a U.S. missile on Crimea killed four persons. Moscow has increasingly blasted Washington and Kyiv’s Western backers for supplying weapons to be fired on Russian targets, calling them direct participants in the two-year conflict.

Legal fraternity may explore Gen AI to reduce errors, enhance efficiency

Generative Artificial Intelligence, or GenAI, is poised to transform the legal profession as many law firms and corporate legal departments are already exploring the GenAI pool, say tech savvy legal professionals and tech experts. Law firms and corporate legal departments are dipping their toes into the GenAI pool, experimenting with tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot, young legal professionals told The Hindu.

India’s current account turns surplus after 10 quarters in Q4 at $5.7 billion

India’s current account balance recorded a surplus of $5.7 billion (0.6% GDP) in Q4 FY24 against a deficit of $1.3 billion (0.2% GDP) a year ago as per data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday. The merchandise trade deficit at $50.9 billion in Q4 FY24 was lower than $52.6 billion a year ago and Q4 services exports grew 4.1% year-on-year (YoY) on the back of rising software exports, travel and business services, the RBI said.

Everton Tea India eyes new markets to increase sales volume

Everton Tea India Pvt. Ltd. has drawn up plans to increase tea bags production capacity by 20% at its Sri City SEZ unit, near Nellore to cater to the needs of export market, said a top executive. “Currently, we are producing 2.8 million tea bags per day, and it will be increased to 3.6 million tea bags by CY25,” said its General Manager Roshan Gunawardhana during an interaction.

T20 World Cup 2024: Rohit Sharma roars as India merrily marches into semifinal

Rohit Sharma once again elevated the muscular exercise of T20 six-hitting into an aesthetic art form as his 41-ball 92 headlined India’s 24-run win in the final T20 World Cup Super 8 game against Australia at the Daren Sammy Stadium in St. Lucia, on June 24. 

Paris Olympics: India secure team quotas in archery; Deepika Kumari, Tarundeep Rai set for fourth appearances

For the first time in 12 years, India will be sending a full six-member archery contingent to the Olympics, making them eligible to compete in all the five events at the Paris Games. This was made possible after the Indian men and women secured the team quotas based on the updated world rankings on June 24.

India tour of Zimbabwe: Riyan Parag, Abhishek Sharma and Nitish Reddy get maiden call-up in Gill-led team

Shubman Gill will lead a relatively inexperienced India squad for a five-match T20I series in Zimbabwe next month. Four members of the squad — allrounders Abhishek Sharma and Nitish Reddy, middle-order bat Riyan Parag and speedster Tushar Deshpande — have earned a maiden India call-up.

The benchmark Sensex has gained more than 5,000 points since the announcement of the Lok Sabha election results on June 4 amid a rally in the broader market. On a monthly scale, the 30-share Sensex is up nearly 5% in June. 

The Sensex extended the rally for the sixth consecutive day to trade at 77,475.08, up 137.48 points (0.18%), at 3:15 pm on Thursday. 

This rally is being powered by the improvement in investor sentiment on expectations of political stability, policy continuity, solid economic growth, a healthy monsoon and easing inflation.

The volatility in the market around the poll results day was triggered by a sharp selloff by foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

 According to data available with NSDL, FPIs sold Indian equities worth ₹25,586 crore in May. However, they invested in Indian debt and debt-VRR instruments during the month. So, the FPI net outflow was ₹12,911 crore last month.

The trend has reversed now. FPIs have invested about ₹12,873 crore in the stock market in June so far, indicating a positive outlook for the economy.

The focus of the market is now on the upcoming Budget and policy decisions. Even though there may be short-term volatility, experts are positive about the equity market for the medium to long term amid easing inflation, above-normal monsoon forecast and prospects of the start of the rate cut cycle by the end of the year.

There remain concerns over the premium valuation of the market. Sensex is now at a record-high level amid the absence of any fresh trigger. Currently, at 23.5, the index’s price-to-earnings ratio (PE) is just slightly below its one-year average PE of 24.

The mid and smallcap segments are even hotter and many analysts see froth building in the space. The BSE Smallcap index is up 10%, while the BSE Midcap index has gained over 7% in June so far.

A lot will depend on what the government reveals in the Union Budget. The government is expected to keep its focus on fiscal consolidation and capital expenditure on infra, construction and manufacturing schemes which will give a boost to the economy and generate employment.

The upcoming earnings season and macroeconomic prints will also be closely observed as they will determine whether the current market valuation is justified or not.

Eleven funds, under the Qualified Domestic Limited Partner programme, have been launched so far this year. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Global fund launches in China have hit a record as a weakening yuan and fragile economy drive demand for foreign assets, in the latest sign of low confidence among domestic investors.

Eleven funds issued under the Qualified Domestic Limited Partner (QDLP) programme have been launched so far this year, according to data by Z-Ben Advisors, already outpacing the full-year number from any previous year.

Managers such as Blackstone, Bridgewater Associates, and Oaktree Capital Management have opened funds, though they did not disclose total fundraising.

The products, which raise money from high net worth and institutional investors and invest in overseas assets, are booming as Chinese markets flounder. The yuan is at six-month lows on the dollar, the stock market shows signs of fatigue after a rebound from 5-year lows struck in February and benchmark 10-year government bond yields have hit record lows.

“Investors’ demand for offshore products have been rising quickly this year due to a weak yuan and sentiment,” said Ivan Shi, head of research at Shanghai-based Z-Ben Advisors, adding alternative investments and foreign bonds are popular.

In April, Blackstone launched its first QDLP fund, channeling money to the firm’s Private Equity Strategies fund.

The initial sales target of $40 million was reached in less than two weeks, according to two people familiar with the matter. Blackstone declined to comment. Market participants say Chinese authorities are largely encouraging the sector and more products are on the way.

Like with the last episode of Business Matters, this one too was triggered by a headline I saw in an article: “India fears losing out to China in smartphone exports race”.

This Reuters piece cited IT Minister of State Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s letter dated January 3 to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expressing fears that India’s high tariffs could be a deterrent to investments – investments that could help bolster our exports.

Why is India struggling to attract such investments? Let’s take a look at what competitors like Vietnam have done right in this space, which India too could, and potentially in quick time.

Mr. Chandrasekar’s missive to his colleague in the government emphasises the need for cutting back on tariffs. Lobbies for Apple and other electronic giants describe our tariffs as high and that the likes of China and Vietnam are more attractive for investors.

Given that firms from several western nations are looking to shift supply chains away from China, Vietnam and other East Asian nations seem poised to grab a good chunk of that pie, while India, despite its aspirations, has lagged.

And in the letter, he says, “The geopolitical realignment is forcing supply chains to shift out of China … We must act now, or they will shift to Vietnam, Mexico and Thailand.”

And sure enough, the change in trends is showing up in statistics. For the first time in 20 years, the US in 2023 imported more from Mexico than it did from China.

India would have liked to have been the one to topple China in that ranking but it did not.

The Reuters article cites U.S. Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti as having recently said that foreign investments were not flowing into India at the pace they should be, and were going to countries like Vietnam instead, because of the tariffs, especially on inputs, or in other words raw materials that go into making a whole product.

“If you tax inputs … you’re not protecting a market. What you are doing is limiting a market.”

So what can India do outpace a rival like Vietnam? After all, India has taken some steps around taxation and performance-linked incentives. In the Feb. 2019 Budget, India announced a 15% flat tax rate for new investments in manufacturing units. Its performance linked incentives have bolstered select sectors such as electronics but not all the others that the country wanted to spur.

In a recent article, Biswajit Dhar, Distinguished Professor, Centre for Social Development, New Delhi, said that the aim of the PLI scheme was to raise the share of the manufacturing sector in gross value added from 16% in 2014-15 to 25% by 2022 (PIB 2018). Instead, the share of the sector has declined to below 15%, he wrote.

In his piece, we read, “Industrial policy was successfully implemented in the East Asian region because the governments used a combination of policies to ‘accumulate physical and human capital, allocate this capital to highly productive investments and acquire and master technology to achieve rapid productivity growth’.”

In the video above, we spoke to Prof Dhar to understand exactly what others have done right and India hasn’t, yet. What emerged is that China, and the China model replicated by Vietnam, have shown that physical infrastructure thanks to which companies only need to come in and plug and play, human skills development and an ecosystem that has developed in tandem – such as railway connectivity and port reforms – alongside labour laws are critical to building investor confidence.

Did you know?

Exports accounted for only 25% of India’s smartphone production worth $44 billion last year, compared with 63% of China’s $270 billion worth of production and 95% of Vietnam’s $40 billion worth.

Last week’s quiz question

A small amount of inflation is good because it makes people buy items now rather than later to help save on expenditure, in the knowledge that costs will keep going up. This spurs consumption. As demand goes up, companies tend to produce more, invest more in manufacturing and hence create more jobs.

Deflation has the opposite effect. It makes people wait before spending, in the anticipation that prices could fall further. This lowers consumption, tempers demand. Companies then tend to produce less, invest less and there are fewer jobs created or worse, potential job loss. In the latter case, workers have even less to spend and this creates a vicious cycle.

Script and presentation: K. Bharat Kumar

Production: Shibu Narayan

New Delhi:

Real estate developers and RWAs will be liable to pay 18 per cent GST on electricity bills if they charge from flat owners more than the power tariff prescribed by Discoms.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has issued a clarification on the applicability of GST on reimbursement of electricity charges received by real estate companies, malls, airport operators etc from their lessees/occupants.

As per the clarification, where electricity is supplied by the real estate owners, resident welfare associations (RWAs), real estate developers etc as a pure agent, it will not form a part of the value of their supply.

It further said where they charge for electricity on an actual basis that is, they charge the same amount for electricity from their lessees or occupants as charged by the state electricity boards or Discoms, they will be deemed to be acting as ‘pure agent’ for this supply, and hence GST will not be levied.

The CBIC clarification came after doubts were raised on the applicability of GST on the electricity supply by real estate companies, malls, airport operators etc to their lessees or occupants.

It is clarified that whenever electricity is being supplied bundled with renting of immovable property and/or maintenance of premises, as the case may be, it forms a part of the composite supply and shall be taxed accordingly.

The principal supply is renting of immovable property and/or maintenance of the premise, as the case may be, and the supply of electricity is an ancillary supply as the case may be.

“Even if electricity is billed separately, the supplies will constitute a composite supply, and therefore, the rate of the principal supply i.e. GST rate on renting of immovable property and/or maintenance of premise, as the case may be, would be applicable,” the CBIC said.

However, where the electricity is supplied by the real estate owners, RWAs, real estate developers etc as a ‘pure agent’, it will not be considered as a supply, and hence no tax will be levied, it added.

AMRG & Associates Senior Partner Rajat Mohan said the CBIC has provided clarification regarding the tax treatment of electricity supply when bundled with the rental of immovable property and/or maintenance of premises.

“In such cases, this arrangement is considered a composite supply and is subject to a tax rate of 18 per cent. It is important to note that billing for electricity separately will not neutralise the tax liability,” Mohan said.

However, when electricity is supplied by developers and RWAs in the capacity of a “pure agent,” it will be exempt from taxation.

“It is worth mentioning that this clarification may not offer relief to every taxpayer, as the conditions specified in the ‘pure agent’ rules are quite stringent. Moreover, the detailed breakdown of various components within electricity bills, especially in a large apartment community setting, can be complex and challenging,” Mohan added.

EY Partner Saurabh Agarwal said the recent clarification issued by the CBIC has raised significant concerns within the real estate sector.

“Going forward, the said clarification may lead to an increase in the rental cost, as landlords may factor the GST cost on electricity when determining lease rental amounts,” Agarwal said.

In cases where real estate companies convert high-tension lines to low-tension lines and charge higher rates due to transmission loss, the implications of this clarification remain a point of concern.

“This clarification provides the tax department with a basis to address previous issues and potentially issue new notices to landlords who have not charged GST on electricity reimbursements,” Mr Agarwal added.
 

New Delhi:

GST collections increased 13 per cent to Rs 1.72 lakh crore in October, the second highest-ever, helped by momentum in the economy, efforts of taxmen in checking evasion and festive demand.

“GST revenue collection for October 2023 is second highest ever, next only to April 2023, at Rs 1.72 lakh crore; records increase of 13 per cent Y-o-Y,” the finance ministry said in a statement.

The highest-ever revenue from Goods and Services Tax (GST) was recorded in April 2023 at Rs 1.87 lakh crore, while in September, it was Rs 1.63 lakh crore.

The average gross monthly GST collection in the current fiscal has also shown an 11 per cent growth year-on-year at Rs 1.66 lakh crore.

Icra Chief Economist Aditi Nayar said GST collections benefited from quarter-end adjustments related to transactions in the previous month and the overall momentum in the economy.

“With this, the pace of YoY growth jumped to a 10-month high in October 2023, which is encouraging. At present, we project the CGST collections to mildly exceed the FY2024 BE,” Ms Nayar said.

During October, revenue from domestic transactions was 13 per cent higher year-on-year.

The gross GST revenue collected in October 2023 is Rs 1,72,003 crore, out of which Rs 30,062 crore is Central GST, Rs 38,171 crore is State GST, Rs 91,315 crore (including Rs 42,127 crore collected on import of goods) is Integrated GST, and Rs 12,456 crore (including Rs 1,294 crore collected on import of goods) is cess.

The government has settled Rs 42,873 crore to CGST and Rs 36,614 crore to SGST from IGST.

The total revenue of the Centre and states in October after regular settlement is Rs 72,934 crore for CGST and Rs 74,785 crore for SGST.

NA Shah Associates Partner, Indirect Tax Parag Mehta said one of the reasons for the rise in collection is the time barring period for the 2017-18 fiscal.

“Spate of notices, anti-evasion drive, DGGST investigations etc. have led to substantial collections. Further, the period from September to December is a festive period where consumer spending is substantial on high-value items like real estate, vehicles, gold, and travel.

“The collections are bound to increase substantially again with the annual returns etc. for FY 2022-23 being filed,” Mr Mehta said.

Deloitte India Partner MS Mani said the remarkable growth in GST collections over the past few months is not only on account of the underlying strong economic factors but also due to the efforts of the tax authorities in deploying tools to compare data sets to determine short payment and evasion.

KPMG Indirect Tax Head and Partner Abhishek Jain said a mid-year collection of such an increased number is definitely worth a cheer, and the ongoing festivities-driven consumption could help this continue.

EY Tax Partner Saurabh Agarwal said with the stable collection, the government can now consider rate rationalisation as the next task.