Top headlines: Anil Agarwal mulls merger, Budget moves quietly on taxes

The FY23 Budget’s nominal GDP assumptions factor in an expectation that the deflator will show a ‘reversal to the mean’ in the coming year, finance secretary TV Somanathan said. Read all the top headlines here: 

Anil Agarwal weighs merger of holding company with cash-rich India unit 

Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal is considering a potential merger of his commodity empire’s indebted holding company with cash-rich listed unit Vedanta Ltd., people familiar with the matter said. Read more

Indirect Taxes: Union Budget 2022 is a transformative and progressive 

The Economic Survey 2021-22 was a precursor to the Union Budget for 2022-23, as it signalled the green shoots in the post-vaccination phase of the economy. The Survey indicated the fiscal headroom that the government has in its hands to ramp up capital expenditure, which will boost growth. Read more

Direct Taxes: FM Sitharaman chooses quiet consolidation in Budget 

The Union Budget for 2022-23 was presented when the Indian economy is on a strong rebound, with the GDP growth for 2021-22 at 9.2 per cent and that for 2022-23 projected at 8-8.5 per cent. The underlying theme of the Budget is promoting digitisation, Make in India, and Ease of Doing Business 2.0. Read more

Budget opted for lasting benefits, not temporary relief: TV Somanathan 

The FY23 Budget’s nominal GDP assumptions factor in an expectation that the deflator will show a ‘reversal to the mean’ in the coming year, finance secretary TV Somanathan told Arup Roychoudhury and Asit Ranjan Mishra. In a freewheeling interaction, Somanathan said that because of interest rate increases, the government was not expecting NSSF contributions in FY23 to be as much as FY22. Read more

We will ensure borrowing programme in FY23 is smooth: DEA secy Ajay Seth 

Market borrowings in 2022-23 may come down if collections under the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF) are significantly higher than estimated, Economic Affairs Secretary AJAY SETH tells Asit Ranjan Mishra and Arup Roychoudhury. Seth says nothing, including a ban on cryptocurrency, is off the table since the concerns of the financial market are real. Read more