Cooling of CPI very satisfying: Shaktikanta Das

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said on Friday that the headline inflation easing to 4.7% during April is “very satisfying”.

“It (CPI April data) gives me and my colleagues in the RBI a good amount of confidence that the monetary policy is on the right track,” he said at the launch of Former NITI Aayog chief executive officer Amitabh Kant’s book on Friday.

CPI inflation eased to 4.7% in April from 5.7% in March, the latest data showed.

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Das, however, declined to comment if the release of the numbers will make the RBI less hawkish, or whether the policy stance of “withdrawal of accommodation” will change, saying that it will be clear on the morning of June 8 when the next policy review is scheduled.

Over the last few years, despite Covid and the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, the RBI has ensured the stability of the Indian rupee, Das said. That is something that the businesses needed. “Unless your currency is stable, investors will not feel confident to invest. In the last one year, the rupee is the least volatile currency if you compare it with currencies of peers,” he said.

The RBI expects GDP to grow at 6.5% in 2023-24. “We are quite optimistic and fairly confident that the growth will be close to our projections. While international agencies like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have given lower projections, we have shared our thoughts with the IMF and are reasonably confident that growth will be close to 6.5%,” he said.

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If India grows at 6.5%, it will contribute 15% of the world growth in the year, Das said. He added that urban demand continues to be strong, rural demand has started picking up, and that private capital investment is picking up in sectors like steel, cement, and petrochemicals. Private investments are also rising, and Das listed steel, cement, and petrochemicals as the sectors where this is being witnessed.