Liquidity infusion through open market operations (OMOs) could not resolve the deficit problem said, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn, further indicated that the apex bank may cut its CRR rates in its next monetary policy meeting scheduled on March 15. However the possibility of a SLR cut has been ruled out.
Gokran, who is in charge of the monetary policy of the RBI, while speaking on the sidelines of a function stated that RBI’s focus continues to remain on growth even though the recent increase in oil prices remain a threat to inflation. However, he clarified that the magnitude and timing of the cut will be governed by market conditions.
The RBI deputy governor further said the current liquidity tightness was partly temporary, and partly due to structural problems like the central bank’s foreign exchange market intervention. He said OMOs were being conducted to offset the structural issues.
On the policy rate reversal, Gokarn said rising oil prices posed an upward risk to inflation. He added the pricing power of producers may have been hit due to the slowdown in growth. ‘With growth having somewhat slowed, whether higher input prices can be automatically passed through to consumers by producers is a question.’
His comments have come in at a time when the economy is faced with a severe liquidity crunch owing to the 13 interest rate hikes made by the RBI to control inflation in this fiscal. The RBI had cut the CRR by 50 basis points in its last review of the monetary policy in view of a slight decline in inflation. The cut in CRR released Rs 32,000 crore into the banking system.
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