Business
Budget 2022: Increase in custom duty on Aluminium scrap from 2.5 to 10% is key expectation

Steel Industry.
As the Indian economy pushes forward to grow at 9 per cent and above over the next few years, a key challenge for the country would be to rebalance its energy needs in favour of renewable sources by 2030 to 50 per cent as per the Paris agreement.
This is where the Aluminium sector will play a greater than ever before role. Extensive growth in electric vehicles, renewables, modern infrastructure, energy efficient consumer goods and greater dependence on strategic sectors such as aerospace and defence, will drive Aluminium consumption to grow at CAGR of 10 per cent or more. For example, Aluminium usage in EV battery is 40-50 per cent more than a normal ICE. Being 3 times lighter than steel it aids in fuel efficiency making it an efficient choice for EVs.
However, the Indian aluminium industry is struggling to revive itself over the last two years following the unprecedented Covid pandemic. The declining domestic producers market share with surging imports coupled with significant cost escalation for primary producers due to a rise in input costs of critical raw materials, escalating ocean freights & logistics costs due to container shortage, current coal crunch situation etc, is restricting the industry’s ability to support the future of the country at a time when India cannot rely on import sources alone to fuel this growth.
To give relief to the sector, there is a need for urgently looking at the duty structure. The basic custom duty on Aluminium and Aluminium scrap is not in line with other non-ferrous metals like Zink, lead, nickel and tin which is a huge disadvantage for domestic Aluminium producers. The industry expects increase in tariff rate of basic custom duty or peak custom duty rate from existing 10 per cent to 15 per cent. Currently custom duty on Primary Aluminium is 7.5 per cent, Downstream Aluminium is 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent and Aluminium scrap is only 2.5 per cent. This is the reason why despite having significant presence of primary Aluminium capacity and potential to generate sufficient domestic scrap, India’s consumption of scrap is 100 per cent import dependent. The way forward is to increase custom duty on Aluminium srap from 2.5 to 10 per cent.
Primary aluminium industry is facing severe threat from the increasing import of Aluminium scrap. The share of scrap in total imports increased from 52 per cent in FY-16 to 66 per cent in FY-21. resulting in Forex Outgo of $2 billion (Rs 15,000 crore).
What is also affecting the Indian industry is China’s renewed measures to restrict Scrap imports through National Sword Policy, which is leading to greater inflow of scrap into India. China imposed 25 per cent duty on Aluminium Scrap imports from USA, and classified Aluminium Scrap in restricted import list from July, 2019, with plan to completely ban all scrap and waste imports. Post that the share of import from the US in China’s total Aluminium scrap imports has declined from 53 per cent in 2017 to just 16 per cent in 2019. India has overtaken China as world’s largest aluminium scrap importer due to Chinese measures. As a result, entire global scrap chain is shifted to India in absence of any quality or BIS standards for scrap recycling/ usage and imports in the country. A major threat is from US scrap imports, as US is diverting large volume of scrap to India, since EU and other developed countries have stringent standards for scrap. The import from US as share of India’s total scrap imports increased from 8 per cent in FY16 to 24 per cent in FY21.
This precarious situation can be resolved by safeguarding the domestic industry against these non-essential imports in the upcoming union budget.
The industry demands increasing the basic custom duty on Chapter-76 (Aluminium & articles).
Business
Nifty, Sensex surge over 2 pc this week amid renewed hopes of US-India trade deal

Mumbai, Oct 18: The Indian equity benchmarks ended the week decisively higher amid short covering from foreign institutional investor (FII) participants and resilient domestic cues.
Market optimism was bolstered by clarity in the India–US trade relations, with both sides tentatively agreeing to conclude the first phase of the deal by November.
The sentiment remained upbeat as Bank Nifty achieved a new milestone, driven by robust buying interest in leading banking stocks. Investor confidence was buoyed by easing concerns around asset quality in the financial sector and expectations of improved volume growth in the festive quarter.
Benchmark indices Nifty and Sensex rose 2.10 and 2.04 per cent during the week, with FMCG, pharma, and auto indices being the major contributors to the rally.
Analysts said that consumption-driven sectors also saw a surge along with a broad-based recovery across realty, healthcare, and banking.
IT stocks remained under pressure due to global discretionary spending concerns and mounting asset quality stress in the US banking system.
Profit booking was also seen in media, and metal stocks, which capped the overall upside of the indices.
The broader market, however, took a breather after a strong run-up, with Nifty Midcap 100 slipping 0.57 per cent and Nifty Small-cap 100 marginally down by 0.05 per cent, indicating selective profit taking by investors.
“Nifty on the weekly chart has formed a sizable bull candle with a higher high and higher low, signalling continuation of the up move. The index broke out above a three-month symmetrical triangle consolidation pattern, indicating a positive bias,” analysts from Bajaj Broking Research said.
They expect the index to head towards 25,900 and then towards 26,200 levels in the coming weeks.
In the holiday-led truncated Diwali week, investors are likely to remain cautious in view of the release of key economic data, such as US inflation, employment, and India’s PMI figures.
Investors are also keen on the cues from the ongoing earnings season and policy signals from major global central banks.
Business
Navi Mumbai: NMMC Urges Advertisers To Obtain Mandatory Permissions Before Displaying Hoardings, Banners And LED Signage

Navi Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has appealed to all advertisers, businesses, and citizens to secure mandatory permissions before displaying any form of advertisement within city limits, in accordance with the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (Regulation and Control of Display of Sky-Signs and Advertisements) Rules, 2022.
As per the Urban Development Department’s notification dated May 9, 2022, the rules are applicable to all municipal corporations in Maharashtra except the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Under Sections 244 and 245 of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, no advertisement can be displayed without prior written permission from the Municipal Commissioner.
The term “advertisement” covers all forms of displays visible from public roads, including hoardings, banners, name boards, neon and glow signs, LED and digital screens, video or laser displays, and other illuminated publicity material.
To ensure compliance, NMMC has appointed M/s Ornate Technologies Pvt. Ltd. to conduct a citywide survey of all advertisement hoardings and signage. The agency will use a mobile application to gather data, contact advertisers through a call centre for guidance, and issue notices to those operating without valid permissions.
NMMC officials have urged citizens and advertisers to extend full cooperation to representatives of Ornate Technologies during the survey. “Our goal is to ensure transparency, safety, and orderly display of advertisements across Navi Mumbai,” said a senior civic official.
“We request all advertisers to regularize their displays by applying for permissions online to avoid penalties and ensure compliance.”
The civic body has directed advertisers to apply through its official website https://app.nmmconline.in, submit the required documents, and pay the prescribed advertisement fees to obtain valid permits before putting up any form of advertisement.
Business
Markets open lower as investors react to Q2 results; IT stocks drag

Mumbai, Oct 17: Indian stock markets opened lower on Friday as investors reacted to the second-quarter (Q2) earnings of major companies, including Infosys, Wipro, and Eternal.
Weak cues from Asian markets and renewed US-China tensions also weighed on investor sentiment.
At the same time, gold prices hit a record high, adding to the cautious mood in the market. However, a sharp drop in crude oil prices — with Brent crude falling to around $60 per barrel — may help limit losses for Indian equities.
At 9:20 AM, the Sensex was trading at 83,365, down 103 points or 0.12 per cent, while the Nifty slipped 33 points or 0.13 per cent to 25,552.
“The Nifty managed to hold its gains and ended near the day’s high, closing above the 25,550 mark with a strong bullish candle. This positive momentum suggests continued strength in the near term,” analysts said.
“On the downside, immediate support is placed at 25,500, followed by 25,400, while on the upside, resistance is seen at 25,700 and 25,800 levels,” market experts added.
Eternal, HCL Tech, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Trent, Tata Steel, Ultratech Cement, and ICICI Bank were among the major losers, declining up to 3.5 per cent.
On the other hand, gains in Asian Paints, Tata Motors, ITC, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Maruti Suzuki helped trim some of the losses. These stocks rose between 0.3 per cent and 3 per cent.
In the broader market, the Nifty MidCap index slipped 0.28 per cent, while the Nifty SmallCap index edged up 0.10 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, IT was the biggest drag, with the Nifty IT index down 1.13 per cent. The Nifty Pharma and PSU Bank indices also declined by 0.3 per cent each.
“The market is resilient and technically strong. Price action in the leading stocks indicate short covering. Even now there is big shorts in the system and the strength in the market might keep the bears on the back foot, facilitating further short covering,” market experts said.
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