Budget 2023: ITC, Godfrey Phillips, other cigarette stocks slide as FM hikes tax by 16%
ADVERTISEMENT
Shares of cigarette makers ITC and Godfrey Phillips tumbled up to 5%, in an otherwise positive broader market, after Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman in her Budget 2023 speech announced a hike in excise duty on cigarettes by 16%. The rise in duty on cigarettes and tobacco products is negative for cigarette makers.
The central government last announced a hike three years ago in FY21, when it increased the National Calamity Contingent Duty (NCCD) by 2-4 times across cigarette stick sizes, resulting in a rise in tax between 9-15%.
Reacting to the news, shares of ITC dropped marginally by 0.4%, while Godfrey Phillips declined as much as 5%. NTC Industries also dropped 1.5%. Bucking the trend, VST Industries and Golden Tobacco were trading marginally higher.
Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was trading nearly 1,100 points higher at 60,650 levels, extending early gains, led by capital goods and metal stocks. Among individual stocks, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank, and Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (HDFC).
January 2026
Netflix, which has been in India for a decade, has successfully struck a balance between high-class premium content and pricing that attracts a range of customers. Find out how the U.S. streaming giant evolved in India, plus an exclusive interview with CEO Ted Sarandos. Also read about the Best Investments for 2026, and how rising growth and easing inflation will come in handy for finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman as she prepares Budget 2026.