00:02The Monetary Policy Committee met on 6th, 7th and briefly today in the morning of April to deliberate and decide
00:11on the policy repo rate.
00:14After a detailed assessment of the evolving macroeconomic and financial developments and the outlook, the MPC voted unanimously to keep
00:23the policy repo rate unchanged.
00:26Under the liquidity facility at 5.25%, consequently the STF rate remains at 5% and the MSF rate and
00:39the bank rate at 5.5%.
00:42The MPC also decided to continue with the neutral stance.
00:49At a time when the global economy is facing unprecedented challenges, from heightened geopolitical tensions, the conflict in West Asia,
01:02for which a temporary ceasefire was announced today, and the disruption in global supply chains.
01:12Before the outbreak of the West Asia conflict, India's macroeconomic fundamentals exuded confidence, with buoyant growth and low inflation.
01:24Conditions, however, turned adverse in March, with the widening of the conflict zone and its intensification.
01:31The fundamentals of the Indian economy are on a stronger footing at the current juncture than it was in previous
01:42crisis episodes, as well as relative to many other economies, providing it with greater resilience to withstand shocks.
01:54The government has taken several measures targeted at supporting exports and protecting supply chains.
02:02This should mitigate the adverse impact of the conflict.
02:06I now come to the assessment of growth.
02:10As per the new GDP series, real GDP growth for last year is estimated at 7.6%.
02:19This corroborates the underlying strong momentum in economic activity, supported by robust consumption and investment, amidst supportive policy measures, ongoing
02:34structural reforms, and favorable financial conditions.
02:39Going forward, elevated energy and other commodity prices, as also shocks to availability of inputs, due to disruptions in the
02:51Strait of Hormuz, are likely to impact growth this year.
02:57The government has, however, been proactive in ensuring supply of inputs across critical sectors to minimize the impact of supply
03:10chain disruptions.
03:11Taking all these factors into consideration, real GDP growth for this year is projected at 6.9%, with Q1 at
03:216.8%, Q2 at 6.7%, Q3 at 7%, and Q4 at 7.2%.
Comments