GST Rate Cut: Sitharaman says some companies passed on ‘higher-than-expected’ benefits to consumers

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that the GST rate reduction implemented last month has been received well by Indians, and businesses have passed on higher-than-expected rate cuts to consumers across the country.

The Finance Minister was speaking at a press conference on the GST rate cuts that were implemented on Navratri by the centre.

“GST rate cut benefits have been reaching the common man since September 22,” Sitharaman said, addressing reporters at the joint press conference today in the national capital.

In quite a few cases, a more-than-expected price reduction due to GST reforms has been passed on to end consumers, she said.

The list of such items include table, kitchen and other household articles, toys like tricycles, solar cookers, and umbrellas among others.

She said that the GST rate cuts have triggered the doubling of AC sales since the very first day, while TV sales increased by 30-35% in case of a major brand on September 22 itself. LG India reported exponential growth in sales during Navratri, and FMCG companies recorded more sales too.

Sitharaman further said that the last nine days of September alone saw a surge in purchases, with passenger vehicle dispatches touching 3.72 lakh units, two-wheeler sales reaching 21.60 lakh units, and three-wheeler dispatches growing 5.5 per cent YoY.

Consumption to increase 10 per cent: Vaishnaw

Speaking at the press conference, Union Information and Technology and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw noted that the GST rate cut could increase consumption by around 10 per cent.

“Because of the GST reforms, consumption will be significantly increasing, and it's very likely that consumption will increase more than 10 per cent this year, which means there is a strong possibility of extra consumption of around ₹20 lakh crore,” he said.

Vaishnaw further said that India has exported more smartphones to the US than a “neighbouring country”, referring to China.

“This is a huge achievement for our country. Some of the biggest companies, about 20 per cent of their manufacturing is now happening in India,” he said.

India progressing rapidly despite global tensions: Goyal

Addressing the joint press conference, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said India is progressing so rapidly that even the imf had to revise its rates for the country's GDP.

“Despite the international difficulties, in a very volatile, very turbulent international environment, India is progressing so rapidly that even the IMF had to revise its forecast upward to 6.6 per cent growth this year,” he said.

Goyal highlighted that the RBI, Finance Ministry and Monetary Fiscal Policy are working together to mitigate the effects of inflation.

“Last month, the lowest inflation rate in eight years was 1.5%. We all saw that after 17-18 years, S&P revised India's rating and raised it one notch, maintaining a stable outlook. Similar results were observed in the general market,” he said.

The ministers concluded that the GST reforms have successfully driven down prices while fuelling demand, marking 2025 as a turning point for India's consumer economy.