MUMBAI, April 6 (Reuters) - India's central bank held
its key repo rate steady on Thursday, after having raised it at
each of six previous meetings, as risks to growth have risen
following recent global financial turmoil.
The Reserve Bank of India said it stood ready to act
against inflation if conditions warranted, with Governor
Shaktikanta Das saying the decision to pause was "for this
meeting only", signalling further rate hikes were still
possible.
The monetary policy committee (MPC), which has three members
from the central bank and three external members, retained the
key lending rate or the repo rate at 6.50%, in a
unanimous decision.
Most analysts had expected one final hike of 25 basis points
in the RBI's current tightening cycle, which has seen it raise
the repo rate by a total of 250 bps since May last year.
Early signs of a slowdown in India are visible in easing
imports and plateauing bank credit demand. Although inflation
remains elevated, it is expected to ease.
(Reporting by Swati Bhat and Sudipto Ganguly; Editing by Sonali
Paul and Clarence Fernandez)
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