RBI Monetary Policy: Governor Shaktikanta Das to announce MPC decisions at 10 am today
The Reserve Bank of India's Governor Shaktikanta Das is all set to announce the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)'s decisions today. After the three-day RBI bi-monthly policy meeting is over, the outcome of the six-member MPC headed by the governor will be known today.
Most experts predict that Reserve Bank is likely to keep the benchmark interest rate unchanged, but may revise growth estimates in view of the September quarter GDP turning out to be better than RBI's earlier projections.
According to experts, the stubborn retail inflation, which has remained above the comfort level of the RBI of around 4 per cent, will refrain the central bank from reducing the interest rate.
The RBI, however, is expected to revise its growth projections as the second quarter GDP numbers at (–) 7.5 per cent worked to be better than its projected contraction.
In its preceding policy meet in October, the Reserve Bank had kept the key repo rate unchanged in view of heightened retail inflation which has persistently remained above its comfort level. After the previous MPC meet on October 9, Das announced that the central bank has kept repo rates unchanged at 4 percent and reverse repo rate at 3.35 percent.
In its October monetary policy statement, the RBI had said the real GDP growth in 2020-21 was expected to be negative at (-) 9.5 per cent, with risks tilted to the downside: (-) 9.8 per cent in Q2:2020-21; (-) 5.6 per cent in Q3; and 0.5 per cent in Q4.
On Thursday, the industry body Assocham said, the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) key focus in the ongoing policy review meeting is likely to be on "ensuring adequate liquidity" in the system while maintaining an "accommodative" stance.
It also said that the accommodative stance would reflect the RBI's commitment to keep the lending rates benign to support growth, hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Focus of the bi-monthly review of the credit policy by the RBI monetary policy committee is expected to be ensuring adequate liquidity into the system, retaining the policy stance as accommodative," Assocham said.
Watch Monetary Policy statement of RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das LIVE
