The Goods and Services Tax (GST), termed as the single biggest tax reform in independent India, rolls out at midnight tonight, ushering in the idea of 'one nation, one tax'. It has been a proposed reform for 16 years by multiple governments, before the present one could make it reality. The new rates are set to have an impact on different sectors, and consumer-facing, price sensitive sectors are preparing for some short-term upheaval. 

The retail sector for example has been impacted as supplier channels have worked to get rid of old inventory as they move to the new system. While mass-market products will face less taxes, higher-margin expensive products are set to attract more, which will affect demand in the shorter term. For retailers however, the big benefit from the GST is the impact on the unorganized sector which had earlier benefited from largely being out of the tax net. 

Another sector set to gain from reduced cost-competition from the unorganized sector is textiles. Firms like Arvind Limited will benefit from the move, since GST impacts entire supply chains and the resulting tax transparency will make the cost differences between branded fashion and so called 'street fashion' smaller. This would give it opportunities to expand its customer base. 

A loser from GST is the telecom sector, with the tax rate effectively hiked by 3% with the rate now pegged at 18%. Pre-paid users are the most price-sensitive, and it will be interesting to see how telecom companies treat these customer segments differently in passing on the tax.