New Delhi: Rating agency Moody’s Investors Service on Wednesday said there are risks of India breaching the 3.3 per cent fiscal deficit target for the current financial year as higher oil prices will add to short-term fiscal pressures.
The agency said the current account deficit (CAD) will widen but will not jeopardise India’s external position; and the gap will remain significantly narrower than five years ago. “Higher oil prices add to short-term fiscal pressures, following cuts in the goods and services tax on some items and relatively high increases in minimum support prices for some crops. We see risks that the deficit will be wider than budgeted,” Moody’s said.