The excise duty collection on major consumer goods like refrigerators,air conditioners,textiles,cars and two-wheelers has seen negative growth in the current financial year,a sign of sluggishness in consumption and production. According to the finance ministry data,there has been a negative growth of 4 per cent to Rs 2,556 crore in excise mop-up from motor cars from April to October,while the collection from iron and steel sector dipped 6.75 per cent to Rs 6,930 crore and two-wheelers declined 4.6 per cent to Rs 229 crore. The contribution from consumer goods such as refrigerators and air conditioners declined 21 per cent to Rs 94 crore during April-October compared with the corresponding period in the last financial year. There has been a slowdown in the textile sector,which manifests in the negative growth of 5.8 per cent in excise revenue to Rs 239 crore. The man-made fibres and yarn segment saw a decline of 17 per cent. According to Ernst and Young tax partner Saloni Roy,the negative growth in excise duty collection in these sectors shows strains in the economy. The economy is slowing down and its impact can be seen in many sectors,said Roy. The median excise duty is levied at 10.3 per cent,including education cess. Those sectors that have beaten the slowdown are cosmetics,tobacco,cement and public transport. The excise duty collection on cosmetics till October rose 28 per cent to Rs 267 crore,while the mop up from public transport vehicles increased 39 per cent to Rs 571 crore. The cement sector has also performed well as the duty collection from it jumped 16 per cent to Rs 4,610 crore during the period. Excise from the pharmaceutical sector rose 85 per cent to Rs 366 crore. FE
