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Raghuram Rajan
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said repo rate cuts by the Reserve Bank in recent times are not a "magic bullet" that will necessarily propel investments, as several other factors play a part in boosting the economy. Rajan further said interest rates, at this point, are not overly high and the impact of rate cuts announced by the RBI will take time to play out. "And as you correctly point out, (high) interest rates were an argument (earlier), but I do not think that can any longer be an argument. "I do not think that necessarily this (rate cuts by RBI) will be a magic bullet to propel investments," Rajan told PTI Videos. On June 6, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra-headed six-member monetary policy committee reduced the benchmark short-term lending rate by 50 basis points, taking the total reduction to 100 bps in quick succession, besides a change in the policy stance to neutral from accommodative and liquidity infusion measures. Rajan was asked whether repo rate cuts announced
India needs to be 'very careful and clever' while negotiating trade agreements with the US, especially with regard to the agriculture sector, which is heavily subsidised by developed countries, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said on Friday. In an interview with PTI Videos, Rajan said India's economic growth has sort of settled in the range of 6-7 per cent, and a fraction of percentage point may be affected by the global trade uncertainties. "I think where it is much more sort of difficult (trade negotiations) is in areas such as agriculture, where every country subsidises its producers, and our producers may be relatively smaller, may have somewhat lower subsidies... the kind of harm that unconstrained flow of agricultural products into the country may create problems for them," he said. Earlier this week, the Indian team was in Washington for the fifth round of negotiations for the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). "For example, can we encourage more foreign direct ...
Attributing the fall in Indian rupee solely to the US dollar getting stronger, former Reserve Bank governor Raghuram Rajan has said any intervention by the RBI on this can end up harming Indian exports even as he urged policymakers to focus on creating more jobs and boosting household consumption. Asked what the second term of US President Donald Trump means for the global and Indian economy, Rajan said, "I think it means uncertainty. President Trump during his campaign laid out a bunch of policies and measures that he wants to implement.". "We are seeing some of them being implemented. We have to see how intensely, for example the policy on immigration and trade and tariff proposals against whom and against which sectors are implemented. As of now what and how all this will pan out," the eminent economist said. On appreciation in the US dollar and its impact on other currencies especially in emerging markets including rupee, Rajan said the dollar has been appreciating against other
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Tuesday lauded the Modi government for doing a lot of good work on the infrastructure front in India and hoped there would be some concrete steps in the upcoming Budget to boost the job market. Speaking at a session on the US dollar here at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, Rajan also said the depreciation in rupee to near Rs 85-level against the US dollar is more because of the strengthening of the American currency rather than any domestic factor. The Modi government has done a lot of good work on the infrastructure front but the other key pillar that needs to boost consumption is the job market, he said. India is growing at 6 per cent, which is actually great but when we look at per capita figures, it needs to grow much faster, Rajan said. There is an urgent need to boost the job market, he said, adding, "a Union Budget is due in the next few days and hopefully we will see something there". When people talk about US dollar remaining
Amid suggestions for excluding food inflation while setting benchmark interest rates, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said that he is against excluding food prices from headline inflation, as it would erode the 'great faith' of people in the central bank, which has been mandated by the government to keep inflation in check. Rajan further said it is best that inflation target a basket which is what the consumer consumes because that affects the consumers perception of inflation and ultimately inflationary expectations. "When I came into office, we were still targeting PPI (producer price index). Now that has no bearing to what the average consumer faces. "So, when the RBI says inflation is low, look at PPI, but if the consumer is facing something very different, then they do not really believe that inflation is down," he told PTI. Rajan was responding to a question on suggestions made in the Economic Survey 2023-24 for excluding food inflation while setting benchmark interest
With 7 per cent economic growth, India is not creating enough jobs as reflected by the number of applicants for vacant posts in some states, Reserve Bank's former governor Raghuram Rajan said and suggested the government needs to focus on promoting labour-intensive industries to generate employment. Rajan further said some Indians, especially those at upper level, are comfortable and have high incomes, but consumption growth from the lower half of the country has still not recovered to pre-pandemic level. "That is the unfortunate part...You would think with 7 per cent growth, we would be creating a lot of jobs. But if you look at our manufacturing growth, it is more capital intensive," he told PTI. Rajan was asked whether the Indian economy, which is growing at 7 per cent, is creating enough jobs. According to him, the industries that are more capital-intensive are growing faster, but labour-intensive industries are not growing. "It is not going well at the lower level. I think th
India has done well in areas like infrastructure in the last 10 years, but it also needs to do more in other sectors to boost local manufacturing and job creation, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said on Thursday. In an interview with PTI, Rajan further said the government's focus on production, whether it is goods or services is a good thing, but it is also important to do it the right way. Responding to a question on the Modi government's flagship initiative 'Make in India', he said, "I would say the intention is good. I think in some areas, we have done a lot, as I said, in infrastructure...we have done a lot that has been very useful". The Modi government's flagship initiative 'Make in India' was launched 10 years ago on September 25, 2014. "But we need to check the other places. And the best way to check is to ask critics, what do you think? What has happened? Has it happened the way you want it? Should we do more? You get feedback, and then you work along," Rajan said. T