New Delhi: Senior Union ministers on Saturday said the Next Gen GST Reforms, rolled out on 22 September 2025, are already producing wide-ranging benefits. From cheaper daily-use goods to record-high electronics and automobile sales, setting the stage for stronger consumption and investment growth in the months ahead.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said the reform drive has “led to a new enthusiasm among all” and will have “a big multiplier effect on the economy,” adding that the IMF has revised India’s growth projection upward following the tax overhaul.
“There has been a strong impact of the GST reforms on automobile sales. Records have been broken in the electronics sector. Lifesaving drugs, textiles, cosmetics, pen, paper and other commonly used goods have been made cheaper. Every household and every citizen is benefiting from the GST reforms,” Goyal said.
Electronics and auto sectors witness record activity
Union IT and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said electronics sales during Navratri were 20 – 25 per cent higher than last season, with electronics manufacturing now growing at a double-digit CAGR.
“India now supplies more smartphones to the US than our neighbour. The country’s second semiconductor plant has also started production,” Vaishnaw noted.
He said consumption is likely to rise by more than 10 per cent this year — roughly ₹20 lakh crore — and investment too is expected to increase significantly as a result of the reforms.
Tax benefits passed on to consumers
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government has been tracking 54 daily-use items to ensure the benefits of GST rate cuts reach the public.
“In every one of them, the tax benefit due to the GST reforms has been passed on to the end consumer,” she said, adding that in quite a few cases, “a more-than-expected price reduction” has reached buyers.
Examples cited by Sitharaman include tables, kitchen and other household articles, toys such as tricycles, solar cookers, and umbrellas.
She said early data show a strong uptick in demand: three-wheeler despatches rose 5.5 per cent year-on-year, two-wheeler sales climbed 21.6 lakh units, and passenger-vehicle despatches hit 3.72 lakh in September alone, with “a flurry of buying” in the final nine days of the month.
On the very first day of the GST rate change, air-conditioner sales doubled, while TV sales jumped 30 – 35 per cent, according to a major manufacturer. LG India reported exponential growth during the Navratri season, and the FMCG sector also registered higher sales.
Economy-wide ripple effects
Ministers said the combined impact of lower taxes, reduced input costs and higher disposable income is expected to lift both consumption and private investment through FY 2026. Sectors such as electronics, auto components, consumer durables and construction materials are likely to gain the most as tax rationalisation deepens supply-chain efficiencies.
