These are the highlights of the seventh bi-monthly monetary policy statement for 2019-20 by the RBI amid COVID-19 pandemic:
The RBI has also increased the saving bank rate by 50 basis points to 4 per cent to give higher returns to depositors in the wake of high inflation.
The central bank has, so far, cut its repo rate by 125 bps.
Equity indices made an emphatic comeback on Friday after falling for seven straight sessions after the RBI hiked interest rates by 50 basis points on expected lines and projected inflation coming under control from January next year. A strong recovery in the rupee added to the momentum, traders said. Overcoming a wobbly start, the 30-share BSE Sensex soared 1,016.96 points or 1.80 per cent to settle at 57,426.92. During the day, it rallied 1,312.67 points or 2.32 per cent to 57,722.63.
Bajaj Finance was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 4 per cent, followed by Maruti, SBI, Bajaj Finserv, Sun Pharma and Asian Paints. NSE Nifty rallied 293.05 points to 17,469.75.
The Reserve bank of India has just increased its repo rate and CRR and there are chances that banks may soon increase the interest rates on home loans.
The broader 50-issue NSE Nifty too slipped from its record high, shedding 10.30 points or 0.09 per cent to end at 11,346.20.
Reliance Industries was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying nearly 4 per cent, followed by Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, TCS and L&T.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das kept the red flag on cryptocurrencies flying, warning that the next financial crisis can be triggered by private cryptocurrencies if such speculative instruments are allowed to grow.
The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday kept the bank rate untouched at six per cent but raised the repo rate by 0.25 per cent to 4.75 per cent effective from Wednesday.
However, some analysts say RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan may delay the rate cuts amid mounting concerns over the government's fiscal health.
In the Sensex pack, Sun Pharma was the biggest gainer, rallying 4.48 per cent, followed by Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors, Coal India, Hero MotoCorp, Maruti and HCL Tech, rising up to 3.01 per cent. While, RIL, PowerGrid, HDFC, L&T, IndusInd Bank, NTPC and Bajaj Finance declined up to 1.50 per cent.
RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan expressed anguish at the banks' reluctance to pass on benefits of the earlier rate cuts.
Corporate houses believe RBI must cut rates to boost investment in the system.
Most banks are yet to pass on the benefits to the consumers.
Many officials had been talking of taking the baton of global growth.
The most recent RBI effort could be the final push that would allow enough and more room for banks, builders and buyers to start moving towards change.
Tactical investors should have an investment horizon of around six months to one year, long-term investors should stick around for 10 years or more.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to keep policy rates unchanged at a six-weekly rate review on Tuesday, ending a year-long cutting cycle as it focuses instead on underpinning the plunging currency.
Foreign portfolio investors' (FPIs') net investments in the domestic debt market surged in December, marking a 77-month high, that is, since July 2017. According to market participants, this significant uptick in FPI inflows can be attributed to the post-domestic policy outcome and the US Federal Reserve's dovish stance at the December policy. FPI inflows into debt stood at Rs 18,393 crore in December against Rs 14,106 crore in November, according to data on the National Securities Depository Limited.
The RBI has this year cut interest rates by 110 basis points in four instalments but banks have passed only a part of it to borrowers. Before the last reduction earlier this month of 35 basis points, the bank on an average had passed only 29 basis points out of 75 basis points cut affected during 2019.
High rates of such schemes deter banks from dropping borrowing rates - and thus lending rates
Housing sales rose 36 per cent year-on-year to a record 120,280 units across seven major cities during the July-September period on robust demand amid stable mortgage rate, according to Anarock. Housing sales stood at 88,230 units in the year-ago period across the seven major cities. Releasing the data, real estate consultant Anarock said average housing prices across the seven cities grew 11 per cent annually in the July-September period this year.
RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Tuesday kept the repo rate unchanged 6.50 per cent.
Whether this remains under control in the coming months will depend on the future intensity and spread of the Russia-Ukraine war, and the effectiveness of the Indian government's response, points out A K Bhattacharya.
The fifth meeting of Monetary Policy Committee maintained the repo rate, at which it lends to the banks, at 6.25 per cent and the reverse repo, at which it borrows, will be 6 per cent.
However, RBI would continue to nudge banks to cut lending rates
Surplus liquidity in the banking system as measured by absorption of excess funds by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) fell sharply at the end of the last week due to outflows on account of advance tax payments. According to the RBI data, the net liquidity absorbed by the central bank on September 16 was at Rs 3,243.57 crore, much lower than the average of Rs 56,809.92 crore in the preceding four days of the week. The average absorption of funds by the RBI so far in September is at Rs 1.13 trillion, against the average of Rs 1.2 trillion in the previous month, the data showed.
The banking system neared Rs 1.47 trillion of liquidity deficit on Monday, the highest since January 29, 2020, when the banking system liquidity deficit went up to Rs 3 trillion. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) injected Rs 1.47 trillion on Monday and Rs 1.46 trillion on Tuesday. Market participants say that the disbursement of Rs 25,000 crore as the second tranche of incremental cash reserve ratio (I-CRR) will not be enough, and the liquidity might tighten further to Rs 2 trillion in short term due to tax outflows and arrival of the festival season.
RBI has pegged the GVA growth of 7.6 per cent for the current fiscal and 7.9 per cent the year after
The global financial services major had earlier said that the central bank would keep its policy rates on hold.
Banks have not cut rates yet as March is typically a busy season.
All six members of the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) monetary policy committee (MPC) expressed caution over food inflation during the December review, while two external members warned about high real interest rates as headline inflation approaches its target of 4 per cent. The central bank continued to maintain the status quo on both the repo rate and the stance in the December monetary policy. India's retail inflation in November rose to 5.5 per cent - its fastest pace in three months - due to higher food prices.
Close on the heels of one per cent cut in interest rate on small savings scheme and PPF in the Union Budget, the Reserve Bank of India announced on Friday a 0.5 per cent reduction in interest rate on savings account to 3.5 per cent effective Saturday
All public sector banks have moved to such a regime voluntarily, while private banks are yet to. The state-run banks have introduced repo-linked products for floating-rate home and auto loans, but the RBI said loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) should also be linked to an external benchmark.
With RBI likely to make credit costlier and banks to follow, some ideas on switching money to be able to do this.
For over a decade, HDFC Bank consistently outperformed industry growth rates in both deposits and advances, maintaining impeccable asset quality. Amid a landscape where other banks struggled with soaring non-performing assets (NPAs), HDFC Bank thrived, eventually surpassing ICICI Bank to become the largest private sector lender in India. Its net interest margin (NIM) remained stable in the range of 4.1-4.4 per cent.
Both the RBI and the central government should see that the transmission of the rate reduction by the banks happens soon, otherwise the whole exercise is futile, says Subramanian MV.
The Reserve Bank of India on Thursday decided to keep policy rate unchanged for third time in a row as it maintains heightened vigil on inflation. The rate increase cycle was paused in April after six consecutive rate hikes aggregating to 250 basis points since May 2022.
Retail inflation rose to three-month high of 4.81 per cent in June, mainly on account of hardening prices of food, according to the government data. Inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 4.31 per per (revised upward from 4.25 per cent) in May and 7 per cent in June 2022. The inflation, however, remains within the RBI's comfort level of below 6 per cent.
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