India imposes import duty on wheat, tur dal

Days before the Centre begins its annual wheat procurement in full steam, it re-imposed an import duty of 10 per cent on the commodity and levied duty of a similar duty on tur (pigeon peas). The estimated revenue implication of both measures is Rs 840 crore at current levels of import. The import duty on tur has been imposed after a long gap. Announcing the decision in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal said a notification from March 17, 2012, had been amended so as to “impose basic customs duty of 10 per cent on wheat and tur with immediate effect”. The import duty on wheat was withdrawn in December after wheat and flour prices started rising in the open market because of a supply crunch. The withdrawal allowed traders to import almost 6 million tonnes of wheat, among the highest in recent times, to restock inventories. Commodity Trading Tips

Inventories with food companies were running thin because of a weak output in 2015-16 and low sale of government stock. Most of the imported wheat came from France, Ukraine and Australia. Officials said large imports and forecasts of a bumper crop prompted the government to impose the tax so that wheat farmers’ interests were protected. The new wheat crop has started arriving in mandis of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat. “Wheat prices in north India are at Rs 1,625 a quintal and transportation to the south will cost another Rs 200. With a 10 per cent levy, imports will not be viable,” said Veena Sharma, secretary, Roller Flour Millers Federation.  Nifty Trading Tips