Key takeaways from FM Sitharaman's press conference

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday proposed new provisions in the Income Tax Act to attract fresh investment in India.

Here are the key takeaways from her press conference, prior to the GST Council meet in Goa:

* Finance Minister proposed to slash the corporate tax rates for domestic companies and for new domestic manufacturing companies. The corporate tax rate will be 22% without exemptions. The effective corporate tax rate after surcharge will be 25.17%. Earlier, the corporate tax rate was 30%.

* No Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) will be applicable on domestic manufacturing companies.

* Local companies incorporated after October 2019 will pay tax at 15%. The effective tax rate for these will be 17.01%, when surcharge is included. Earlier, the corporate tax for these companies was 25%.

* To stabilise the flow of funds into the market, the enhanced surcharge announced in Budget 2019 will not apply on capital gains arising on sale of any security, including derivatives by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs).

* For listed companies that made announcements for public buyback before July 2019, tax will not be levied on buyback on shares of such companies.

* Total revenue foregone by undertaking these measures is Rs 1.45 lakh crore per year.