New Delhi, July 16: The Centre has raised windfall taxes on exports of diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) while lowering the levy on petrol exports, as surging global oil prices driven by the escalating US-Iran conflict boosted refining margins, with the revised rates taking effect from Thursday.

According to a Finance Ministry notification, the export duty on diesel has been increased to Rs 15.5 per litre from Rs 8.5 per litre, while the levy on aviation turbine fuel has been raised to Rs 14.5 per litre from Rs 7.5 per litre.

At the same time, the government has reduced the export duty on petrol to Rs 2.5 per litre from Rs 4 per litre.

The revised rates came into effect from July 16, according to the notification.

The latest revision comes amid a sharp rise in global crude oil prices following an escalation in hostilities between the United States and Iran.

Oil prices climbed on Wednesday before easing slightly after US President Donald Trump reimposed a naval blockade on all Iranian ports, prompting Iran to launch retaliatory strikes on US infrastructure in the region.

Earlier this month, the government had revised the windfall tax on exports of petroleum products by raising the levy on petrol while reducing the duties on diesel and aviation turbine fuel.

The Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on petrol exports was increased to Rs 4 per litre from Rs 1.5 per litre. At the same time, the export duty on diesel was reduced to Rs 8.5 per litre from Rs 14 per litre, while the levy on ATF exports was cut to Rs 7.5 per litre from Rs 12.5 per litre.

The government reviews windfall taxes on domestically produced crude oil and exports of petroleum products at regular intervals to align the levies with changes in international crude prices and refining margins.

Mumbai, July 16: Indian equity benchmark indices traded higher in the morning session on Thursday despite mixed global cues.

Sensex jumped over 300 points or 0.42 per cent to hit an intraday high of 77,514.30 in early trade, while Nifty rose 88 points or 0.36 per cent to 24,167 amid buying in consumer durables, IT and auto stocks.

Nifty Consumer Durables index surged 1.63 per cent, followed by Nifty IT, which gained 1.38 per cent, Nifty MidSmall IT & Telecom, up 1.13 per cent, and Nifty Auto, which advanced 0.72 per cent.

On the downside, financial stocks remained under pressure, with the Nifty MidSmall Financial Services index falling 1 per cent and Nifty Financial Services Ex-Bank declining 0.88 per cent. Nifty Realty, Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Private Bank indices also traded lower.

SBI Life, HDFC Life, ONGC, Axis Bank, BEL, Max Healthcare Institute, Grasim Industries and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise were among the top laggards on the Nifty.

Analysts said the market is likely to trade in a narrow range with a positive bias as crude oil prices remain broadly steady and global markets stabilise.

Investors will closely track the June quarter earnings season, with banks and NBFCs expected to post healthy numbers backed by robust credit growth, according to them.

They further noted that automobile companies are also likely to remain in focus amid expectations of strong quarterly growth, supported by GST cuts and easier availability of finance, while profitable digital platform companies could continue to attract investor interest.

Meanwhile, Brent crude rose 0.71 per cent to around $85 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 1.24 per cent to $80.59 a barrel.

Among Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei traded over 2 per cent lower and South Korea’s KOSPI declined around 6 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained about 2 per cent.

New Delhi, July 15: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said he met Maros Sefcovic, EU Trade and Economic Security Commissioner, and reviewed the progress on the implementation of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The two leaders also “explored avenues to deepen cooperation in trade, investment, critical technologies and resilient supply chains,” Goyal posted on X.

Goyal and Sefcovic in March this year met on the sidelines of the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Cameroon, and reviewed progress on the India-EU FTA.

Both the leaders reviewed progress on the ongoing work towards the signing of the India-EU FTA, as announced by PM Narendra Modi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in January 2026 in New Delhi.

In Brussels, Goyal also held a productive meeting with Bernd Lange, Chairman of the Committee on International Trade (INTA), European Parliament.

“Discussed the India-EU FTA and the vast opportunities it offers for businesses, industries, and people on both sides, paving the way for a prosperous future. Also extended an invitation to him to visit India to further deepen our engagement,” said Goyal.

India and Belgium earlier discussed ways to expand cooperation across trade, investment, technology, logistics and workforce mobility. Goyal had an excellent meeting with David Clarinval, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Employment, Economy, and Agriculture of Belgium.

“We also exchanged views on the transformative potential of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement and reaffirmed our shared commitment to further strengthening economic ties for the mutual benefit of our businesses and people,” Goyal said in a post on X.

Goyal also met EU Commissioner for Climate, Net-Zero and Clean Growth, Wopke Hoekstra, and exchanged views on strengthening India–EU cooperation in clean growth, climate action and sustainable industrial development.

The discussions focused on expanding collaboration in renewable energy, green hydrogen, clean technologies, innovation, investments and resilient value chains to support our shared net-zero ambitions.