Indian Govt Cuts Import Duty on TV Panels to Bring Prices Down

The industry also wants the government to revise the GST slab for TVs from 28 to 18 percent as well.

Xiaomi Mi TV 4 will find a lot of takers in India.

(Photo: The Quint)

In a bid to boost domestic manufacturing, the government has removed the 5 percent custom duty imposed on import of open-cell TV panels, which are used in the manufacturing of LED TVs.

The move would also help to reduce the price of TV panels by around three percent.

Earlier, on June 30, 2017, the government had imposed a custom duty of 5 percent on import of such panels.

Several TV makers including the Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association had opposed it and had requested the government to waive it.

In a late night notification on Tuesday, the Ministry of Finance said "open cell, (15.6 inch and above), for use in the manufacture of Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) and Light Emitting Diode (LED) TV panel", would attract nil duty.

Besides, the government has also waived custom duty on import of Chip on Film, Printed Circuit Board Assembly (PCBA) and Cell (glass board/ substrate), which are used to manufacture open cell TV panels.

Open cell panel is an important part of TV manufacturing and cover more than half the cost of the unit.

The industry has noticed the changes made by the government, which is invariably going to make the end product affordable for consumers.

The decision to exempt basic custom duty on open cells from 5 to zero percent is a welcome move. The announcement comes at an opportune time considering the flat growth that TV’s have witnessed in the last year. Since open cells form a major share of the total manufacturing cost of TV’s, the move will allow us to pass the benefits to the end consumer.

Manish Sharma, President and CEO, Panasonic India and South Asia

These changes, according to Sharma could reduce the prices of LCD/LED televisions in the country by three to four percent.

Having said that, Sharma from Panasonic and possibly other TV makers have urged them to revise the GST slab rates for 32-inch TVs from 28 percent to 18 percent.

(With PTI inputs)