LPG costlier by Rs 14 in Assam after subsidy withdrawal
Assam government has withdrawn the partial subsidy of Rs 14 on domestic LPG cylinders and hiked the price of petrol by 76 paise per litre and diesel by Rs 1.67 a litre. The state government has also increased VAT to 6 per cent from 5 per cent on 127 household goods with immediate effect. According to a Gazette notification, the government withdrew “the partial exemption granted to the oil companies on sale of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for domestic use within Assam” with immediate effect. When contacted, Assam Commissioner and Secretary (Finance) Ravi Kota told PTI that the withdrawal of the subsidy will result in increase in prices of LPG cylinders by Rs 14 each. This decision was taken at the last Cabinet meeting and has come into effect from yesterday, he added. “…the price of petrol will increase by 76 paise and diesel by Rs 1.67 per litre,” Kota explained. The government has also increased VAT on 127 items under Second Schedule to 6 per cent from 5 per cent earlier. The Second Schedule items include most of the day-to-day household goods such as agricultural implements, all types of yarns, all kitchen utensils, bamboo items, all types of cycles and their parts, bulk drugs, coffee beans and seeds, coir products, edible oils, paper, plastic footwear, printed material, readymade garments and renewable energy devices. Some other important items, whose prices will go up due to the new tax structure, include skimmed milk powder, all spices, tractors, vanaspati, vegetable oil, embroidery or zari articles, processed meat, poultry, fish, processed or preserved vegetables and fruits, golditems, glass bangles, hand made soap, pure ghee, sweets, baby feeding bottles and nipples, dry fruits, soya nuggets, jute and jute products. Prices of medical diagnostic kits, x-ray films and other diagnostic films, medical equipments, devices and implants, spectacles, spare parts of motor vehicles, medicines, honey, glucose, sugar and CFL bulb have also been raised by revising the VAT rates northward. Chris Jones Authentic Jersey
Brent oil falls below $50 as Nigeria ups production
Oil prices retreated in Asia Tuesday, with Brent easing below $50 on news of increased production from Nigeria following the repair of infrastructure damaged in militant attacks. Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, pumped an average 1.53 million barrels a day last month, up around 90,000 a day from May. The Nigerian state minister for petroleum resources, Emmanuel Kachikwu, said last month that a ceasefire with rebel forces had allowed the Nigerian government to repair the damaged oil pipelines, Bloomberg reported. At around 0325 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery was down 67 cents, or 1.37 percent, to $48.32 and Brent crude for September eased 42 cents, or 0.84 percent, to $49.68 a barrel. “Oil prices are pulling back on easing supply disruption concerns, as markets reacted to news that Nigerian production has increased last month,” IG Markets analyst Bernard Aw told AFP. “Nonetheless, oil prices remained relatively stable around the $50 mark. This will be welcomed by the oil sector.” Despite the increase in production, a recent resumption of attacks on Nigerian oil pipelines has underscored the volatility of the situation in the country. Crude prices had edged up on Monday after Nigerian oil militant group Niger Delta Avengers on Sunday claimed five attacks on the country’s oil and gas infrastructure in a revival of their sabotage campaign after a recent lull. The Avengers are fighting in the Niger Delta region for a bigger share of crude revenue and greater political autonomy. British bank Barclays said prices will also remain under pressure from the impact of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, which is yet to fully unfold. “The dire warnings about the effect on global financial markets and risk appetite from a UK vote to leave the EU are yet to manifest themselves in commodity markets, which in general have performed robustly over the past week,” it said in a market analysis. “Whether this proves to be the calm before the storm depends on the extent of negative contagion,” it added. “The deterioration in the global economic outlook, financial market uncertainty and potential ripple effects on key areas of oil demand growth are likely to exacerbate already-lacklustre industrial demand growth trends.” James Develin Womens Jersey