Banks show sharp growth in advance tax collections for Q4

However, the other corporates' deposits are hinting at a mixed quarter

Banks have shown healthy growth in their advance tax deposit this quarter, with the highest payer, State Bank of India, depositing Rs 1,750 crore, 20 per cent higher than in the corresponding period of the previous year.

According to sources, ICICI Bank and YES Bank have shown 32 per cent and 30 per cent jump in their tax deposit to Rs 1,295 and Rs 260 crore, respectively, in the quarter. Advance tax numbers are significant, as they are used by analysts to reverse-calculate profit before taxes.

However, the tax deposits by companies are showing a mixed trend, with  L&T and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) recording 41 and 36 per cent drops in their tax submission, respectively,  while Reliance Industries has seen a 17 per cent increase.

According to sources, L&T has deposited Rs 170 crore of advance tax for the quarter, against Rs 290 crore in the year-ago period. For M&M, the figure is Rs 115 crore, against Rs 180 crore. For Reliance Industries, the deposit has increased to Rs 1,594 crore from Rs 1,367 crore  in the year ago period. TCS, the largest software exporter, has shown a near-flat deposit, with Rs 1,140 crore submission this quarter against Rs 1,130 crore in the year-ago period.

The government has a target of about Rs 2.3-lakh crore of advance tax collection for 2014-15.

UNEVEN TREND
Advance tax collections (Rs cr)