The September 22 notification merges 12 percent into 8. The everyday winners: 1) packaged foods — namkeen, sauces, frozen items; 2) butter and ghee; 3) processed dry fruits; 4) umbrellas, bicycles, sewing machines; 5) budget hotel rooms under ₹7,500; 6) non-AC restaurant bills already at 5 stay, but their packaged inputs fall — menus feel it.
From the 28-to-20 move: 7) small cars — the first effective cut since 2018; 8) two-wheelers above 350cc; 9) cement — every home under construction saves; 10) ACs and large TVs; 11) cinema tickets at multiplex rates; 12) aerated drinks, cess rationalised into the rate.
Not moving: essentials already at nil-and-5 (by design) and tobacco (by everyone's design).
The catch to watch: pass-through. The anti-profiteering window runs twelve months; after that, competition polices margins. Consumer companies guided "substantial" pass-through within hours of the date — the festival quarter will grade them. Our GST editorial argues why the reform chose the hard way; the price tags will argue back by Diwali. Track both on the economy desk.
