The tax is right, but needs rationalisation

Abstract

Commodity futures trading has seen phenomenal growth since the establishment of multi-commodity, electronically-traded national exchanges in 2003-04. Trade values in these exchanges have grown exponentially from Rs 1.3 lakh crore in 2003-04 to Rs 36.8 lakh crore in 2006-07. A combination of factors such as major process improvements, professional management of exchanges, better integration with financial markets, and facilitation by the Forward Markets Commission have helped to achieve this growth. Many commodities, both agriculture and metals, have been brought into futures trading in the last three years. This has generated considerable interests among various stakeholders such as policymakers, the business community and farmers. There is now a realisation that futures trading could become a useful instrument in commodities marketing. Therefore, questions on their role in fulfilling the intended functions of price discovery and price risk management are being asked, their performances evaluated and a cautious approach taken. Read more at: https://www.financialexpress.com/archive/the-tax-is-right-but-needs-rationalisation/285149/