Budget 2024: Price drops and hikes—What’s changing?

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the Union Budget 2024-25. The budget emphasised making essential medicines more accessible, particularly for cancer patients. It introduced a reduction in customs duties on precious metals. The budget also tackles environmental concerns by increasing the Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on PVC flex banners to curb their harmful environmental impact.

List of items with reduced custom duties: 

- Mobile Phones: Duty reduced from 20% to 15%.

- Cancer Medicines: TrastuzumabDeruxtecan (from 10% to nil), Osimertinib, and Durvalumab are duty-free.

- Precious Metals: Gold and silver duties reduced from 15% to 6%, platinum from 15.4% to 6.4%.

- Other Metals: Duties removed on ferro nickel (from 2.5%), blister copper (from 5%), ferrous scrap (earlier it was nil until September 30, 2024, now it is nil until March 31, 2026), and nickel cathode; 2.5% concessional duty on copper scrap.

- Marine Products: Reduced from 15% to 5% on specific broodstock, polychaete worms, shrimp, and fish feed.

- Minerals: 25 critical minerals exempt from customs duties.

- Solar Energy: Duty-free capital goods for solar cell (from 7.5% to nill) and panel manufacturing.

- Leather and Textile: Reduced duty on MDI for spandex yarn manufacture from 7.5% to 5%.

List of items with increased custom duties:

- Telecom: BCD on PCBA (Printed Circuit Board Assembly) for telecom equipment increased from 10% to 15%.

- Plastic: BCD on PVC flex banners raised from 10% to 25%.

- Chemicals: BCD on ammonium nitrate increased from 7.5% to 10%.