JUNE 20249VIVO TO DOMESTICALLY MANUFACTURE FOLDABLE PHONESCENTRAL GOVERNMENT CUTS WINDFALL CRUDE TO RS.5,200 FROM RS.5,700After achieving the top position in the Indian smartphone market in Q1, Chinese smartphone brand Vivo is set to launch its first-ever foldable smartphone in India. The device, named XFold3 Pro, aims to capture a share of the country's rapidly grow-ing premium segment, directly competing with indus-try giants like Samsung and Apple.The XFold3 Pro will be assembled in India, utiliz-ing some locally sourced materials at Vivo's new 170-acre factory, which is expected to be fully operational by the end of June. Scheduled for an early June launch, this foldable smartphone will be Vivo's first product priced over Rs 1 lakh, positioning it against Samsung's fifth-generation foldables and other high-end offerings from brands like OnePlus and Tecno."These numbers also say you are getting the trust of consumers. We did not want to launch anything just for the sake of launching. Premium customers are looking not just for a product. They are looking for an experi-ence. They are looking for a brand they can trust," said Geetaj Channana, Head of Corporate Strategy at Vivo India. He emphasized that Vivo's customers are now ready to follow the brand into higher price segments.For its first foldable smartphone in India, Vivo has focused on enhancing the device's crucial hinge com-ponent and overall design, making it lighter and slim-mer than its competitors. The XFold3 Pro adopts a book-shaped form factor similar to Samsung's flagship foldable, reflecting Vivo's commitment to delivering a premium user experience. By improving the hinge and optimizing the design, Vivo aims to provide a sophis-ticated, high-quality product that meets the expecta-tions of discerning customers in the premium segment. This strategic move highlights Vivo's ambition to solid-ify its presence and expand its influence in the Indian smartphone market. The Centre on Saturday slashed windfall gains tax on domestically-produced crude to 5,200 per tonne from earlier 5,700 per tonne. The export duty on petrol diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) will continue to be nil.The new rates will be effective June 1 2024, the Cen-tral Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) said in a late night notification Friday.On May 16, the Centre had revised windfall tax on domestically produced crude oil to 5,700 down from 8,400 per tonne.On April 16, the Centre raised the windfall tax on petroleum crude to 9,600 per tonne from 6,800, after firming of crude oil prices in the international market. It was further slashed to 8,400 per tonne.India first imposed windfall profit taxes on July 1, 2022, joining a host of nations that tax extraordinary profits of energy companies. The rates are reviewed ev-ery fortnight based on international crude oil prices in the previous two weeks.When domestic crude oil's global benchmark price reaches $75 per barrel, the windfall tax typically kicks in. Additionally, the assessment on diesel, ATF, petro-leum is applied assuming the item edges outperform $20 per barrel. The official notification stated that the Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) for diesel and aviation fuel remained at zero. This tax is imposed in the form of SAED.TOP STORIES
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