LED TVs will get cheaper ahead of the festive season thanks to a duty cut

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LED TVs will get cheaper ahead of the festive season thanks to a duty cut
BCCL

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  • The Indian government announced that it’s scrapping the import duty on open cell LED TV panels — the main component of TV manufacturing.
  • TV manufacturers welcome the change stating that this will bring down production costs.
  • Lower costs will also translate to cheaper TV prices and could boost sales ahead of the festive season in India.
The import duty that drove Samsung out of manufacturing TVs in India has finally been scrapped.

The Indian finance ministry announced that import duty on open cell LED TV panels has been removed and TV manufacturers in the country are welcoming the change.

Open cell LED TV panels are the main component of most TVs in the market today. They also account for nearly 65-70% of the production cost.
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"The decision to exempt basic custom duty on open cells from 5% to zero is a welcome move. The announcement comes at an opportune time considering the flat growth that TV's have witnessed in the last year," said Mr. Manish Sharma, the President and CEO of Panasonic India and South Asia in a statement.

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Cheaper TVs for consumers

Cutting down on import duties will reduce the cost for manufacturers and, in turn, make the prices of TVs cheaper for consumers.

"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 which would be about 3-4% reduction in price thus providing the necessary thrust to the market," shared Sharma.

Boost ahead of the festive season

The TV market in India has been flat so far this year, stagnating at around ₹22,000 crore. It even declined between the months of July and August by 2% to 3%.

SPPL, the exclusive brand licensee of Thomson TVs in India also welcomes the move and believes that this will boost sales for the upcoming festive season.

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"We have been requesting the government to decrease the duty. This will boost indian manufacturing and definitely improve market sentiments this festive season, which will further reflect on sales," said Avneet Singh Marvah, CEO of SPPL told Business Insider India.

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