They also foresee a continued decline in food prices, which fell to 5.1 per cent in July from 8.4 per cent in June year-on-year, further supporting expectations of a rate cut
The current inflation-targeting regime should be suitably updated, but it should remain the framework for India's monetary policy for the foreseeable future
Goyal, who voted for rate cut in both June and August review meetings, says that she does not see any broad-based rise in core inflation
India adopted the inflation targeting framework in 2016, setting a 4% headline inflation target for the central bank's rate setting panel
Deputy governor Michael Patra also warned about the spillover effects of food inflation
The six-member Monetary Policy Committee of the RBI has kept the policy repo rate unchanged at 6.5% since February 2023
The RBI MPC has also decided to keep its stance of 'withdrawal of accommodation' unchanged with a majority of 4-2
RBI Monetary Policy Meeting 2024: Catch all the latest highlights on RBI's monetary policy announcements here
The liquidity in the banking system has improved significantly on the back of government spending
The RBI's monetary policy should be driven by domestic factors and not the Fed
Most respondents expect rate cuts from Dec; change in stance unlikely
A debate on real interest rate has picked up steam as the repo rate has been kept unchanged at 6.5 per cent since February 2023 despite inflation prints showing a downward trend
Internal members, however, cited food inflation risk for maintaining the status quo and said the last mile of disinflation has been slow
Food prices tend to obstruct the disinflation process
India Inc welcomed the Reserve Bank's move to raise the growth outlook for FY25 and stated that it expects the Reserve Bank to reduce the key repo rate when inflation stabilises within its target band. The Reserve Bank, which has been mandated to ensure inflation remains at 4 per cent (with a margin of 2 per cent on either side), mainly factors in CPI while arriving at its monetary policy. It left the key interest rate unchanged as widely expected, keeping the focus on inflation amid robust economic growth that is likely to provide the new Modi government headroom for manoeuvring reforms. The central bank also retained its projection for retail inflation at 4.5 per cent for the current fiscal assuming a normal monsoon, while emphasising that uncertainties related to food price outlook warrant a close monitoring. Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based retail inflation has been projected at 4.5 per cent with quarter-wise projections at 4.9 per cent in Q1 (April-June), 3.8 per cent in Q2, 4
The decision to maintain the repo rate and raise the GDP forecast was made during the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held between June 5 and June 7
RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting LIVE updates: Economists expect the central bank to maintain the repo rate at 6.5 per cent for the eighth consecutive time
The expectations for the RBI panel to begin cutting interest rates soon are there, however, the exact timing remains uncertain
The BoE said on Thursday its Monetary Policy Committee voted 7-2 to keep rates at a 16-year high of 5.25% after Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden joined Swati Dhingra in voting for a cut to 5%
US inflation is altering expectations