RBI Monetary policy reaction: Standard Chartered

11 Feb 2022 , 08:56 AM

“Today’s MPC decision to hold rates is a testament to RBI’s pro-growth stance. Coupled with last week’s expansionary Union Budget, RBI’s decision to remain accommodative for as long as needed, augurs well for India’s economic recovery and also for its journey towards becoming a US$5 trillion economy. The decision to hold rates will cap borrowing costs and will also aid credit delivery.

The extension of liquidity facilities for healthcare service and other contact intensive sectors will provide much needed relief for these crucial sectors. The enhancement of the Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) limit for FPIs from Rs1.5 lakh crore to Rs2.5 lakh crore should attract sustainable flows into the debt segment. Opening up of the local currency Credit Default Swap (CDS) market and allowing domestic banks to participate in the Foreign Currency Settled-Overnight Indexed Swap (FCS-OIS) market are positive steps towards a more vibrant derivatives market and will provide new hedging solutions for onshore participants. Enhancement of e-RUPI voucher limit from Rs10 thousand to Rs1 lakh and allowing these to be used multiple times should allow better delivery of Direct benefit transfer (DBT) benefits. Also, augmentation of the NACH limit from Rs1 crore to Rs3 crore should improve operational flexibility for Trade receivables discounting system (TReDS) platform.”

The author of this article is Zarin Daruwala, Cluster CEO, India and South Asia markets (Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka), Standard Chartered Bank

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