By Vivek Dubey
CNBC-TV18.com
Published August 08, 2024
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept its key interest rate unchanged, continuing efforts to sustainably lower inflation towards its 4% target.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.50% for the ninth consecutive policy meeting.
The monetary policy stance remains at 'withdrawal of accommodation' to bring inflation towards the target, with a majority vote supporting this stance.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das noted that India's food inflation remains "stubbornly" high, emphasising the need for policy consistency.
Das highlighted that resilient economic growth allows the central bank to focus on bringing inflation down to the 4% medium-term target.
The MPC last altered rates in February 2023, raising the policy rate to 6.50%. Inflation rose above 5% in June due to higher food prices.
The RBI maintained its growth forecast for fiscal 2025 at 7.2%, slower than the 8.2% expansion in fiscal 2024.
The central bank retained its inflation forecast at 4.5% for the current year, indicating ongoing vigilance against price pressures.
RBI proposed creating a public repository of digital lending apps to help consumers identify unauthorised platforms and avoid fraudulent activities.
The RBI decided to enhance the limit for tax payments through UPI from ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh per transaction, facilitating larger payments.
RBI aims to allow primary users to enable secondary users to make UPI transactions up to a limit without needing a separate bank account linked to UPI.
RBI will shorten the interval for lenders' reporting to Credit Information Companies (CICs) from monthly to fortnightly or shorter intervals.