what to expect from rbi monetary policy

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) met in October 2023 to decide on the policy rate and stance. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, the market unanimously did not expect a change in rates or the stance. The RBI chose to keep the policy rate unchanged at 6.5% and maintain its "withdrawal of accommodation" stance. The high inflation risk was highlighted as the major risk to macro stability, emanating from volatile food and energy prices both domestically and globally, driven by geo-political factors and climate changes. The RBI remains very careful and on a vigilant watch mode, with a hawkish outlook. The RBIs MPC retained its inflation projection for FY24 unchanged at 5.4%, but price pain remains a major risk. In summary, the market did not expect any change in rates or stance, and the RBI chose to maintain the status quo, with a hawkish outlook due to high inflation risk.