India’s fiscal deficit is likely to surge at least 70 basis points to 4% of GDP in 2019-20 as a result of the corporate tax cuts announced by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday in Goa.
The finance minister said the revenue loss to the exchequer will be ₹1.45 trillion in 2019-20. In the Union Budget presented in July, Sitharaman had slashed fiscal deficit target to 3.3% of GDP from 3.4% estimated in the interim budget presented in February. “We are conscious of the impact it will have on fiscal deficit,” Sitharaman told reporters while announcing the tax measures.
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The government cut corporate tax rate for domestic companies that do not avail of any tax incentive to 22%. Effective corporate tax rate after surcharge will be 25.17%.
New manufacturing companies will have to pay an even lower corporate tax rate of 15%.
Sitharaman told reporters that an Ordinance has been cleared earlier in the day giving effect to the amendments to the Income Tax Act. The tax relief is part of steps the government has been announcing after consultations with the industry, on a weekly basis, to deal with the slowdown, the minister said.
Source: livemint
