A 25-bps hike today may reduce some near-term policy flexibility, but it also lowers the risk of having to undertake a much sharper adjustment later, said Sujan Hajra, chief economist at Anand Rathi
The more important signal from here will be the RBI's forward guidance, analysts said, and whether this marks the beginning of a broader tightening cycle.
The Governor acknowledged that price pressures are increasingly extending beyond food and fuel.
RBI's MPC hiked the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5 per cent from 5.25 per cent.
The yield on India's 10-year bonds jumped 5 basis points to 7.27 per cent after the decision and was up 8 bps compared to Tuesday's close of 7.19 per cent, according to data on Bloomberg.
The Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee unanimously hiked the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5 per cent from 5.25 per cent.
The RBI's new calibrated tightening stance signals that further rate hikes remain possible as the central bank responds to inflation and economic risks
Crude below $100, earnings optimism, and oversold recovery lift sentiment
The Nifty Private Bank index advanced over 1%, while the Bank Nifty and Nifty PSU Bank index rose 0.6% and 0.3% respectively on Tuesday, a day ahead of the RBI policy decision.
A hike would put the Reserve Bank of India alongside Asian peers that have already begun tightening and mark the first such move under Governor Sanjay Malhotra
RBI MPC meet: At its August monetary policy review, the RBI kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent and maintained its 'neutral' stance
The Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee began its three-day meeting on Monday and is likely to raise rates by 25 basis points, aligning with the central banks' hawkish stance amid escalating conflicts in West Asia that pose risks for domestic inflation. An interest rate hike by the RBI in its upcoming monetary policy would mark a stance reversal, following rate cuts in 2025 and a prolonged pause thereafter, according to a PTI poll of 16 economists and bankers. "Insights, assessments, and the way forward-set to unfold soon," the Reserve Bank said in a social media post while announcing that the monetary policy statement will be announced on October 7 at 10 am. The last repo rate hike was in February 2023, when the RBI raised the rate by 0.25 per cent to 6.50 per cent. It kept the rate unchanged through 2023-24 before beginning its rate-cut cycle in 2025. Currently, the RBI's policy repo rate stands at 5.25 per cent. A majority of participants in the PTI poll expect a rate hike
Nearly 60% of economists polled by Reuters, 35 out of 61, expect a 25-basis-point rate hike at RBI's policy meeting on Wednesday
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to increase the repo rate by 0.25 per cent in the October monetary policy review due to mounting inflationary pressure amid the re-escalation of the West Asia crisis and also the rate hikes by global central banks, according to economists and bankers. If the RBI increases the rate in the upcoming policy, it would mark a reversal in the interest rate policy, which has witnessed rate cuts in 2025 and an extended pause thereafter, according to a PTI poll of 16 economists and bankers. The last repo rate hike was in February 2023, when the RBI raised the rate by 0.25 per cent to 6.50 per cent; it then kept the rate unchanged through 2023-24 before beginning its rate-cut cycle in 2025. Currently, the RBI's policy repo rate stands at 5.25 per cent. "Coordination with global central bank hikes, rising inflation risks and strong growth momentum provide policy space to hike," said Kanika Pasricha, chief economic advisor at Union Bank of India. Furthe
RBI's interest rate decision, TCS' earnings, crude oil prices and global bond yields will be important factors to determine stock market movement this week, analysts said. Macroeconomic data announcements and foreign investors' trading activity will also guide market trends, they added. "RBI's monetary policy meeting will be closely watched. The policy stance, inflation outlook and growth projections will provide important cues on the near-term trajectory of domestic interest rates and financial markets. "This week will also mark the beginning of the earnings season, with index heavyweight TCS and retail major DMart among the key companies scheduled to announce their results," Ajit Mishra, SVP Research, Religare Broking, said. On the data front, India's final HSBC Services PMI and Composite PMI readings for September are scheduled to be released on October 6, he said. TCS is slated to announce its September quarter earnings on October 8. "Crude oil remains the most immediate ...
India has maintained a cautious approach towards cryptocurrencies while promoting the underlying technologies such as distributed ledger technology and tokenisation, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Saturday. Malhotra said India supports innovation in technologies underlying crypto assets, including distributed ledger and tokenisation, but remains cautious about cryptocurrencies due to concerns over monetary sovereignty, monetary policy and capital flows. "So, our approach has been to promote the underlying technologies, and we are using some of these in the central bank and outside in PPP (public-private partnership) mode. But insofar as crypto is concerned, it has been a cautious approach," he said at the Kautilya Economic Conclave. Expressing concerns about cryptocurrencies, the RBI Governor said it is related to the 'singleness of money' and their potential implications for monetary policy, particularly in emerging market economies, where capital flow restrictions are in ...
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Saturday said the resilience of the financial system today should not be taken as a guarantee against future vulnerabilities and called for continued vigilance to safeguard financial stability. Speaking at the Kautilya Economic Conclave here, he outlined five priorities for policymakers, stressing that financial stability should focus not on preventing shocks but on strengthening the financial system's ability to withstand and contain their impact. "Today's resilience may not necessarily imply tomorrow's immunity, and we are committed to remain vigilant of emerging vulnerabilities and continue to keep our financial system strong and resilient," he said, highlighting the resilience of the financial system supported by healthy balance sheets of banks and NBFCs. He said shocks, whether endogenous or exogenous, are inevitable and the objective should be to build a financial system capable of providing financial services even under severe ...
Record inflows from Indians abroad have left banks flush with cash, pushing overnight rates below the RBI's 5.25 per cent policy rate as inflation pressures build
Beyond February 2027, Nomura expects the probability of further rate increases to diminish, citing the potential for a slowdown in consumption.
The Reserve Bank of India has conducted sell-buy dollar-rupee swaps with lenders over the past two weeks, taking rupees out of the financial system to contain risks from surplus liquidity