RBI Governor Meets Nirmala Sitharaman Ahead Of Central Bank's Meet

Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for a non-agenda courtesy meeting, a fortnight ahead of the central bank's meet to decide on benchmark policy rate.

Das-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled to meet from April 3-5, the first for 2024-25 fiscal year.

The MPC meet is expected to spell out inflation and growth trajectory for financial year beginning April 1.

RBI in its last policy released in February projected a growth rate of 7 per cent and inflation outlook at 4.5 per cent for FY25.

An RBI bulletin on Tuesday said food price pressure is an obstacle to swifter fall in retail inflation to the Reserve Bank's target of 4 per cent.

Retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) is on a decline since December and was at 5.09 per cent in February.

It further said the global economy is losing steam, with growth slowing in some of the most resilient economies and high frequency indicators pointing to further levelling in the period ahead.

In India, real GDP growth was at a six-quarter high in the third quarter of 2023-24, powered by strong momentum, robust indirect taxes, and lower subsidies.

The high visibility of structural demand and healthier corporate and bank balance sheets will likely be the galvanizing forces for growth going forward, the article on the 'State of Economy' in the central bank's March bulletin said.

It also said India can sustain 8 per cent annual GDP growth and the conducive macroeconomic configuration may become a launching pad for a step-up in the country's growth trajectory.

Over the period 2021-24, gross domestic product (GDP) growth has averaged above 8 per cent.

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