Key Points
India targets platinum alloy imports to prevent tariff arbitrage
Restrictions focus on alloys below 99% purity
Move linked to India-UAE trade agreement
Aims to close import duty loopholes
Platinum - unwrought, in powder form, and others - has been put under the "restricted" category against "free" prior, as per a notification from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).
However, the import of platinum alloy of 99 per cent or more purity by weight is free from any restrictions.
The move to place the import of platinum alloys under a restricted category stems from allegations that these alloys were blended with gold and exported to benefit from the tariff differential, which is 2 percentage points.
Most likely, the restrictions have been placed to check the import of platinum at concessional duty from UAE under the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.
At a meeting of the Joint Committee (JC) under the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in October, Indian side raised the issue related to the recent surge in imports of silver products, platinum alloy and dry dates and urged UAE to verify compliance to the rules of origin norms and ensure that the rules are not circumvented.
UAE had agreed to examine concerns raised by the Indian counterparts.
