What RBI governor said on repo rate, inflation, GDP growth: Top points

RBI Repo rate: In the first MPC announcement in Financial Year 2024-25 (FY25), RBI governor kept repo rate unchanged at 6.5%.

RBI Repo rate: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das announced the Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC) decision on interest rates after the two-day review meeting of the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), the rate-setting panel. The meeting commenced on April 3 and concluded today (April 5). In the first MPC announcement in Financial Year 2024-25 (FY25), RBI governor kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent for seventh consecutive time. Repo is the rate at which the central bank lends money to banks for the short term.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das,(PTI)

What RBI governor said on repo rate?

RBI governor said that the MPC will remain watchful of food inflation and the six-member rate-setting panel had favoured the status quo on interest rates by a majority vote of 5:1 while maintaining focus on withdrawal of accommodative stance.

What RBI governor said on GDP growth?

The RBI governor announced that there will be no changes in the GDP growth forecast for FY25 and the estimate was retained at 7 per cent for the current fiscal year. 

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What RBI governor said on inflation?

On the inflation front, the RBI MPC sees it at 4.5 percent for FY25. He said, “Inflation is on a declining trajectory and GDP growth is buoyant. At this juncture we should not lower our guard but continue to work towards ensuring that inflation aligns durably to the target.”

“With rural demand catching up, consumption is expected to support growth in FY25. The RBI has projected a retail inflation of 4.5 per cent in fiscal 2024-25. It has projected an inflation of 4.9 per cent in Q1, 3.8 per cent in Q2, 4.6 per cent in Q3 and 4.5 per cent in Q4 of FY25,” he added.

What happened in RBI's February MPC?

The RBI maintained status quo on policy rates and stances in its last review, which was held in February 2024 but the decision was not unanimous and one member recommended a rate cut of 25 basis points.