Indian Tyre Manufacturers Seek Rubber Duty Reduction

A number of Indian tyre manufacturers have called for import duty on rubber to be reduced in the forthcoming national budget in order to rectify an anomaly that sees this raw material attracting a higher duty than tyres imported from overseas. According to a statement released by the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association, (ATMA) many of the country’s 43 domestic manufacturers are seeking a change from the current 20 per cent duty down to 7.5 per cent, as it is believed this reduced rate will deter the dumping of tyres from China and other countries.

Imported tyres currently attract a 10 per cent duty, reduced from 12.5 per cent in the previous budget. “It’s time to correct one of the last remaining inverted duty structures in our economy,” said Apollo Tyres chairman Onkar Kanwar. “It is cheaper to import a finished product into India, than manufacturing it here, putting domestic industry at a significant disadvantage.”

ATMA also favours a waiver of customs duty on butyl rubber, polyester tyre cord, styrene butadiene rubber and bromo butyl as these products cannot be sourced locally.