EEPC seeks faster refund of taxes

Adding woes to domestic automobile manufacturers along with component vendors, their export markets have also remained depressed, the engineering export body said in a statement.

Kolkata: In view of the slowdown in the automobile sector, Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India on Wednesday said it has sought a faster refund of taxes and availability of steel at global prices.

Adding woes to domestic automobile manufacturers along with component vendors, their export markets have also remained depressed, the engineering export body said in a statement.

Commenting on the trends, EEPC India Chairman Ravi Sehgal said, "In a way, the automakers face a double whammy. Exports too are laggards even as the fall in the domestic market is reported to be quite sharp.

"It is time to take immediate measures like a faster refund of state and central taxes. Besides, steel availability at international prices would be crucial to make automobile exporters competitive."

Automobiles, comprising cars, two and three-wheelers, showed a decline of 3.82 per cent in July 2019, over the same month last year, the EEPC said.

Aggregate exports from these three segments dropped year-on-year (y-o-y) from USD 1.33 billion to USD 1.28 billion for the month under review.

The decline in the automobiles was led by the drop in y-o-y exports of motor vehicles and cars by 8.3 per cent and two and three-wheelers by 5.5 per cent.

However, there was a modest rise of 3.90 per cent in auto components and parts, the statement added.