ITC stock falls 6.50% on worries over taxes in Budget

Shares of ITC Ltd, India's biggest cigarette manufacturer, fell 6.50 per cent  in noon trade on reports that the government may raise taxes on cigarettes aggressively in the upcoming Budget in July.

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan has sought an increase in tax on cigarettes of all lengths by Rs 2 to Rs 3.50 per stick, reports said on Friday.

"Although the previous government had raised tax on cigarettes by about 19 per cent in February 2013, the increase was too little to lower consumption," the report quoted the minister as saying.

Reacting to the news, shares of ITC closed 6.50 per cent down at Rs 314 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.