Another important decision has been taken by the central government to control the import of silver into the country. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has issued a notification imposing new restrictions on silver imports with effect from Saturday. According to this.. henceforth it is mandatory for traders to get a special license from the government to bring silver from abroad into India.
Earlier silver imports were free subject to RBI norms. But with the latest changes, it has been changed from ‘Free’ category to ‘Restricted’ category. Apart from silver bars of 99.9 percent or more purity by weight, the new rules also apply to gold and platinum plated silver bars. Due to this, the government will take full control of the amount of silver coming into the country.
It is known that recently on May 13, the central government increased the import duty on gold from 6 percent to 15 percent. It is noteworthy that these new restrictions were imposed only a few days after that decision. Apart from raising taxes, the government has taken this strategic step with the intention of completely banning silver imports.
Experts believe that due to these two consecutive decisions taken by the government, the availability of silver in the domestic market will decrease and its prices will increase further in the short term. The impact of these changes will be immediate on silver merchants, jewelery manufacturers and industrial buyers.
