Union Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram today said measures taken by the Centre to moderate inflation would bear fruit in future.
New Delhi, May 3 : Union Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram today said measures taken by the Centre to moderate inflation would bear fruit in future.
"I believe that the measures taken by the government will bear fruit in the near future. I also wish to place the present inflation in context. Average inflation in 2006-7 was 5.4 percent, peak inflation was 6 average inflation 5.4 percent. In the government's view this is still high and requires to be contained below 4.5 percent," he said in the Lok Sabha.
He announced some changes to the budget proposals presented in the Parliament in February.
Chidambaram said a tax on employees' stock options would continue. It would come into force once options are exercised or shares are sold and not at the time of allotment as announced earlier.
He also said that duty on Iron ore exports would be cut.
Inflation is now hovering around 6.0 percent, having hit a two-year high of 6.7 percent in January.
ANI