<h1>Public bank report says GST cut causes modest Rs 3,700 crore revenue loss, no material fiscal deficit impact</h1> A leading public-sector bank's research report projects that recent GST rate rationalisation will produce a modest revenue loss of about Rs 3,700 crore, far below the government's estimated annualised impact of Rs 48,000 crore, and asserts no material effect on the fiscal deficit due to growth and consumption offsets. The GST Council moved from four tiers to a two-tier structure (standard 18%, reduced 5%, and a 40% de-merit rate for select items); the report predicts the effective weighted average rate falling to 9.5% and inflationary relief-25-30 bps in essentials this year and 65-75 bps overall in 2026-27-plus banking-sector cost efficiencies.