New Delhi, September 14 (Daily Kiran) : The Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Sanjay Malhotra, met with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday. Their discussion comes at a critical time as inflation forecasts and rising crude oil prices have become pressing issues.
The Finance Ministry confirmed the meeting via a post on social media platform X, stating, “RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra met with Nirmala Sitharaman.”
This meeting is significant as India recorded a robust GDP growth rate of 7.8% in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, despite ongoing global economic uncertainties.
The next meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which sets policy interest rates, is scheduled for October 5 to 7, 2026. In its last meeting in August, the central bank maintained the repo rate at 5.25% for the fourth consecutive time.
However, uncertainty looms over the upcoming policy review due to escalating crude oil prices and geopolitical tensions. A report from the Economic Research Department of the State Bank of India (SBI) indicates that arguments for raising interest rates have strengthened compared to a month ago.
The report highlights that the need for an interest rate hike is assessed independently of potential decisions by the U.S. Federal Reserve. It notes that geopolitical uncertainties have contributed to crude oil prices surpassing $100 per barrel, introducing new risks to India’s inflation outlook.
According to the SBI report, if crude oil prices remain elevated, inflation could rise to 6.5% or higher in October and November.
The changing dynamics of inflation and commodity prices have also influenced the monetary policy outlook. Whereas a month ago, there was an expectation of maintaining policy stability, the situation now appears to be shifting.
As the RBI prepares for its upcoming monetary policy review, market participants, industry stakeholders, and investors are closely watching. There is keen interest in whether the central bank will continue its strategy of keeping the repo rate stable or shift towards a more stringent monetary policy in response to rising inflation pressures.
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