Govt non-committal on excise duty cut on petrol, diesel

Rising global oil prices may push up India's import bill by up to USD 50 billion, impacting current account deficit, but would have little affect on growth, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg said today even as he remained non-committal on cutting excise duty to the ease the burden on consumers.

The government is watching the situation developing from oil prices hitting USD 80 a barrel -- the highest since November 2014, and adequate steps will be taken, he told reporters here without elaborating.

Asked if the government would cut excise duty on petrol and diesel, he said he has nothing to say on that front. "Just watch."
"If the prices go up obviously this (import bill) will have impact but under different scenarios we see the impact ranging from roughly about USD 25 billion to maximum USD 50 billion," he said. "Basically it is the oil which impacts the CAD, so the impact on oil might influence the CAD."
"The growth parameters are also very sound, macro economic parameters also continue to be very sound, the inflation is within the range. So on the macro-economic front the economy continues to do well and we have no downward revision on growth or upward revision on fiscal deficit. So none of those things are worrying," he said. "We have continued with our program on borrowings without interruptions."