India, the world's biggest bullion consumer, has raised the base import price for gold and silver for travellers who import small quantities of the metals, a government statement said on Wednesday.
Base price, or tariff value, is the rate at which imports are taxed, irrespective of the purchase price, to prevent under-invoicing.
The base import price for gold was raised by 5.7 percent to $556 per 10 grams and that of silver by nearly 12 percent to $1,067 per kg. The government statement said the changes were in reference to an earlier order on imports by airline passengers.
India annually imports around 800-900 tonnes of gold.
Last month, India hiked its gold import duty by 90 percent and doubled the tax on silver, sending futures prices higher and hitting shares of jewellers.
Gold on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was flat at 28,098 rupees per 10 grams, while silver also traded steady at 56,439 rupees per kg.
Source : reuters.com