Centre cuts windfall tax on diesel, ATF exports

The Centre cut the windfall tax on exports of diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) from October 1, according to a notification issued by the Finance Ministry on Wednesday.The duty on diesel exports was reduced to Rs 16 per litre from Rs 20 per litre, while the levy on ATF exports was cut to Rs 10.5 per litre from Rs 15 per litre. The revised rates applied for the next fortnight.The windfall tax on petrol exports remained unchanged at Rs 0.5 per litre.The government had last revised the export levies on September 16, when the diesel duty was reduced to Rs 20 per litre from Rs 25 per litre and the ATF levy to Rs 15 per litre from Rs 19 per litre.The export duties were reviewed every fortnight based on international crude oil and petroleum product prices.There was no change in the existing excise duty rates on petrol and diesel cleared for domestic consumption, reflecting that the latest revision applied to exports and did not directly alter the excise duty on fuel sold in India.