A cursory look at the advance tax payments by leading corporates during the July-September quarter showed most of them are sanguine about raking in handsome profits despite fears of a slowdown. However, the overall tax collection target for this fiscal might not be met.

Led by Reliance Industries, India’s biggest private sector company, corporates across sectors barring some banks paid higher taxes in the quarter compared with the year-ago period. RIL’s tax outgo rose 67 per cent to Rs 2,000 crore in the second quarter while that of TCS zoomed 111 per cent to Rs 570 crore.

L&T’s tax outgo increased 17 per cent to Rs 350 crore in the quarter, while HUL paid Rs 200 crore as advance tax (up 33 per cent) and ACC, Rs 90 crore (up 38 per cent). Tata Steel paid Rs 620 crore as advance tax, up 19 per cent.

Financial institutions put up a mixed show, with the country’s largest lender State Bank of India paying 10.5 per cent less at Rs 1,700 crore, while ICICI Bank paid Rs 650 crore, the same as in the year-ago quarter. HDFC Bank’s performance has been impressive. It paid Rs 800 crore, up 33 per cent. (Indian Express)