Market representatives have sought a lower STT on cash market trades, said sources. This discussion came up during Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s pre-budget consultations ahead of the Union Budget 2026-27 in February.

The representatives sought a lower STT – Securities Transaction Tax that’s applied when one trades on the exchanges – compared to derivatives. There was also a discussion on increasing household allocation to equities from 5 per cent to 8 per cent, said sources to Business Today TV. Advertisement

The industry proposed that buyback tax be levied only on the profit component and not on the total payout.

There were also suggestions to align short-term dividend tax for domestic investors with the NRI rate. NRIs pay 20 per cent tax on short-term dividends, while domesti

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