India Stocks: Indian shares off to muted start; ITC, Varun Beverages drop on GST hike report

Varun Beverages

03/12/2024 04:26

(Updates for market open)
       Dec 3 (Reuters) - Indian shares were little changed at
the open on Tuesday as consumer stocks fell after a report of a
likely tax hike on cigarettes, tobacco and aerated drinks,
offsetting broad-based gains.
    The NSE Nifty 50  .NSEI  rose 0.09% to 24,300.1 points, as
of 9:30 a.m. IST, while the BSE Sensex  .BSESN  gained 0.05% to
80,287.61.
    Eleven of the 13 major sectors logged gains. The more
domestically focused small-  .NIFSMCP100  and midcaps
 .NIFMDCP100  added about 0.5% each.
    Consumer index  .NIFTYFMCG  shed 1.3% after a Press Trust of
India report said that the goods and services tax (GST) on
products such as aerated beverages, cigarettes and other
tobacco-related items could be hiked to 35% from the current
28%.
    Eleven of the 15 NIFTYFMCG constituents declined, with
cigarette maker ITC  ITC.NS  sliding 2.5% and Pepsi bottler
Varun Beverages  VARB.NS  dropping 3.7%.

 (Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by
Sumana Nandy)
 ((bharath.rajeswaran@thomsonreuters.com; +91 9769003463;))