Import duty on gold and silver jewellery has been raised to 15 per cent from 10 per cent. The decision is intended to protect the interests of small jewellary makers. A notification in this regard was issued today in New Delhi.

Customs duty on gold has been revised upwards periodically during the last two years to contain the widening Current Account Deficit. It was raised from six per cent to ten per cent on 13th of last month. However, the rate of customs duty on jewellary items was not revised in line with changes in duty rates of gold, silver and platinum.

In order to standardise valuation and improve transparency, the Reserve Bank of India has tightened the norms for loans against pledge of gold jewellery. The RBI said, in a notification, that gold jewellery accepted as collateral will have to be valued at the average of the closing price of 22 carat gold for the preceding 30 days, as quoted by the Bombay Bullion Association. Currently, there is no standard method for arriving at the value of gold accepted as collateral.