
New Delhi: Budget 2012 presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday, March 16, makes eating out and phone bills and other comforts of life costlier, pinching the common man. Increase in service tax will increase one's mobile bills by 2 per cent every month.
Two and four wheelers will get more expensive and so will refrigerators, air conditioners (ACs), washing machines, watches, cosmetics and tobacco products.
The FMCG industry said they will be forced to increase prices even though sales are already muted and margins are under immense pressure. Pranab Mukherjee increased excise duty to the pre-crisis level of 12 per cent from 10 per cent.
Also biting hard is air travel and hotel stay that will get dearer. ...
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08:58 AM, Mar 17, 2012