RBI Monetary Policy: Date, Time And Where To Watch

The Monetary Policy Committee or MPC of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) chaired by Governor Shaktikanta Das met on August 6, to discuss the third bi-monthly monetary policy for the fiscal year 2024-25. MPC will make the necessary announcements during its press conference scheduled on Thursday, August 8.

This will be the first MPC meet after the Union Budget which was presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 23. Its also the current MPC's last meet before its term ends and new members are appointed. During the tenure of the current MPC, the 4% target has eluded the committee, but for justifiable reasons such as the ongoing volatility caused by vegetable prices currently.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das will announce the decision of the six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Thursday, August 8 at 10:00 a.m.

The live streaming of the Monetary Policy announcement will be available on our NDTV Profit YouTube channel here.

MPC outcome will also be streamed on RBI's official YouTube channel here. 

Viewers can watch RBI Governor's press conference live on the NDTV Profit TV channel or tune into our Live TV section on NDTV Profit website.

Follow our Monetary Policy Live Blog for all the latest updates from RBI Monetary Policy announcement on August 8.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to maintain the current benchmark interest rate during its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting.

All economists polled by Bloomberg expect the MPC to maintain status quo for the eighth straight meeting. The benchmark lending rate, or the repo rate, will remain unchanged at 6.5%.

The last hike in the repo rate happened in February 2023 when it was increased to 6.5%, and since then, it has remained unchanged in the subsequent eight bi-monthly monetary policy reviews.

India's retail inflation surged to a four-month high in June, driven by rise in prices of vegetables. The Consumer Price Index-based inflation rose to 5.08% in June, compared to 4.75% in May, led by vegetables prices. The Monetary Policy Committee stated in its June resolution that there is a need to closely monitor the arrivals of key rabi crops, particularly pulses and vegetables, given the recent sharp upturn in prices.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to maintain the repo rate at 6.5% for the eighth consecutive time.

Out of the six MPC members, four voted in favor of maintaining the policy repo rate. The MPC has chosen to uphold its monetary policy stance at 'withdrawal of accommodation'.

The Reserve Bank of India had lifted the real GDP growth forecast for the ongoing fiscal to 7.2% from 7% earlier. During its April MPC meeting, the central bank projected real GDP growth of 7% in the previous fiscal year. For the ongoing fiscal year, it estimated growth rates of 6.7%, 6.5%, and 6.4% for the first, second, and third quarters, respectively.

Here's how the repo rate has changed over last 22 years.

The next RBI Monetary Policy Committee meetings for FY 2024-25 will be held on the following dates:

• October 7-9, 2024

• December 4-6, 2024

• February 5-7, 2025.