Govt cuts import tariff value on gold, silver

The government on Tuesday cut the import tariff value on gold and silver to $396 per 10 gram and $575 per kg, taking into account weak global trends.

For the second fortnight of September, the tariff value on imported gold was fixed at $420 per 10 gram, while that for silver at $645 per kg.

The import tariff value is the base price at which customs duty is determined to prevent under-invoicing. It is revised on a fortnightly basis considering volatile global prices.

The slash in tariff value on imported gold and silver has been notified by the Central Board of Excise and Customs, an official statement said.

Besides, the government has also reduced the tariff value on imported both crude and soft palm oils to $725-764 per tonne, while it stood in the range of $743-773 per tonne in the second fortnight of September.

Taking weak global cues, the import tariff value on crude soyabean oil has also been cut to $838 per tonne from $890 per tonne, while the tariff value on imported poppy seed has been kept unchanged at $3,429 per tonne in the review period.

In Singapore market, gold prices fell by about 5.5 per cent for the month after hitting 9-month low of $1,206.85 last week as Asian equities remained unsettled by political unrest in Hong Kong.

Gold is the second largest import item for India after petroleum. The government has imposed several restriction to curb imports to contain current account deficit (CAD).

After registering decline, gold imports surged to $2.03 billion in August this year from $738.7 million in the same month last year, according to official data.

The Commerce and Industry Ministry is pitching for easing of the gold import restrictions to boost gems and jewellery exports, which declined by 10.31 per cent in August to $3.23 billion.

To reduce trade deficit, the government last year raised its gold import duty to a record 10 per cent and made it mandatory to export 20 per cent of the imported gold.