Budget 2018 to give a fillip to rural economy; 2Ws, tractors to benefit

The Union government presented its last Budget today. Finance minister Arun Jaitley started the session with a sharp focus for reducing the disparity between the rural and urban economy.

The minister announced that the government plans to increase the minimum selling price (MSP) for Kharif crops to 1.5 times of the existing levels, along with an additional corpus of Rs 2,000 crore for setting up the Agriculture Market Fund.

This move will lead to a multiplier effect on the rural economy, which in turn will not only increase the income levels for the farming community, but also lead towards creation of infrastructure.

Importantly, for the automotive sector, the sharp focus on rural India, will help boost sales of two-wheelers like commuter motorcycles, farm equipment including tractors and SUVs, all of which would give manufacturers of these vehicles an uptick in future numbers.  

For the luxury carmakers the budget 2018 has increased the taxes on CKD vehicles to 15 percent.