RBI chief Shaktikanta Das to announce monetary policy at 10 am today

The Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das will announce monetary policy statement at 10:00 am today. Post-policy press conference at 12:00 pm today, the RBI tweeted.

The RBI's monetary policy committee is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged amid persistently high inflation and economy performing better than expected in September quarter. Inflation has remained consistently above the upper end of RBI's mandated 2%-6% target range every month barring March this year while core inflation has also remained sticky.

Economists and market participants will however closely watch the commentary from the RBI around growth outlook, liquidity and inflation. RBI governor Shaktikanta Das recently said the economy was showing stronger than expected pick-up in recovery but one needs to be watchful of the sustainability of demand.

“With inflation continuing to trend well above RBI’s medium-term target of 4%, there is limited room for a rate cut in the upcoming policy. We have seen encouraging signs of a pick-up in economic activity and a return of consumer demand, buoyed by the festive season," said Shanti Ekambaram, Group President – Consumer Banking, Kotak Mahindra Bank.

"The next few months are critical as it needs to be seen whether demand levels will sustain and the central bank will closely monitor the growth trajectory and high-frequency data prints. Till there is sustained demand recovery, the Monetary Policy Committee is expected to maintain its accommodative stance."

The September quarter gross domestic product contracted 7.5% on year compared to a decline of 23.9% in the previous three months.

Economists expect the RBI to announce measures to help tweak market rates through liquidity absorbtion operations or giving increased access to the reverse repo window to more market participants.