Overview
- The six-member Monetary Policy Committee voted unanimously to lower the repo rate to 5.25% while retaining a neutral stance.
- The RBI announced about Rs 1 lakh crore of government bond purchases via OMOs and a three-year $5 billion dollar–rupee swap to bolster liquidity and transmission.
- Forecasts were revised with FY26 CPI inflation lowered to roughly 2% and real GDP growth raised to about 7.3%.
- Retail inflation fell to an all-time low near 0.25% in October even as the rupee recently breached roughly 90 per U.S. dollar, with foreign exchange reserves cited around $686 billion.
- Experts expect EMIs to decline and credit to become cheaper for housing, autos and MSMEs, while banks could see net interest margins pressured as pass-through gathers pace.