RBI Keeps Repo Rate Unchanged at 6.5 Per Cent

New Delhi: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced the bi-monthly monetary policy for the financial year 2023-24 and kept the repo rate steady at 6.5%.

“After a detailed assessment of the evolving macroeconomic and financial developments and the outlook, RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee decided unanimously to keep the Policy Repo Rate unchanged at 6.5%,” said the RBI governor.

RBI’s six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held a meeting from October 4 to 6.

Das said that retail inflation is projected at 5.4% for 2023-24 with the second quarter at 6.4%, Q3 at 5.6% and Q4 at 5.2%. “Headline inflation had surged in July driven by tomato and other vegetable prices. It corrected partly in August and is expected to see further easing in September on the back of moderation of these prices,” the governor said.

Das also said “Global trade is contracting, headline inflation is easing but rules above the target in major economies,” he said.

According to him, in contrast to global trends, domestic economic activity has exhibited resilience on the back of strong demand.