MUMBAI (Reuters) - Finance Minister Arun Jaitley set India's fiscal deficit target for the 2015/16 fiscal year at 3.9 percent of gross domestic product and said it would reduce the target gradually to 3 percent by 2017/18, one year later than previously expected.
Jaitley also said the government expected to implement the goods and services tax by April 2016.
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FISCAL DEFICIT
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NILAYA VARMA, HEAD OF GOVERNMENT SERVICES, KPMG INDIA
"Although possibly controversial and against economist expectations, the pushing out of meeting the fiscal deficit target by a year shows pragmatism in bringing in additional public investments for infrastructure development, compensating (for) lack of private investment and showing seriousness on improving overall infrastructure."
ANANTH NARAYAN, REGIONAL HEAD OF GLOBAL MARKETS - SOUTH ASIA, STANDARD CHARTERED, MUMBAI
"Markets were expecting a fiscal deficit target of 3.6 percent to be met in 2015/16, so the 3.9 percent number will be negative for the markets as an initial reaction on Monday.
"Also markets were not expecting the government to extend the fiscal consolidation roadmap by one year, and we were expecting fiscal deficit target of 3 percent of GDP to be met in 2016/17. But we have to see how this additional money coming out of the higher fiscal deficit will be spent."
TAXATION
SACHIN MENON, COO - TAX & HEAD OF INDIRECT TAX, KPMG INDIA, MUMBAI
"The announcement that the much awaited GST will be introduced on 1st April 2016, will definitely rejuvenate the industry.
"The GST will make manufacturing more competitive and thereby support the 'Make in India' Campaign. How fast the Finance Minister will move the wheels of change to usher in GST will be keenly watched in the coming days"
(Reporting by Suvashree Dey Choudhury and Sumeet Chatterjee; Editing by Rafael Nam)