In 2025, the GST Council implemented substantial tax cuts on construction materials: cement was reduced from 28% to 18%, bricks, tiles, and sand from 18% to 5%, paints and varnishes from 28% to 18%, and marble and granite blocks to 5%. Even modest reductions of 2–3% proved significant for middle-income homebuyers, especially when combined with […]
India’s trade deficit widened to a record in October 2025 as imports rose due to higher domestic demand after a cut in consumption tax, while exports fell due to US tariffs on the world’s fourth largest economy. India’s exports fell 11.8% year-on-year to $34.38 billion in October, while imports stood at $76.06 billion, rising 16.6% […]
India’s retail inflation rate fell to its lowest on record in October 2025 due to a sharp drop in food inflation and GST rate cuts. Vegetable prices declined 27.57% after a 21.38% fall a month ago. (ANI) The consumer price index — a measure of India’s retail inflation — rose 0.25% from a year earlier, […]
