Banks must pass on repo rate cut benefits to lift consumption, investment: India Inc

08 Aug 2019 Evaluate

With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cutting repo rate by 35 bps to 5.40% to help revive the economy, India Inc said its swift and full transmission by banks in the form of lower lending rates will be essential to lift consumption and investment in the economy. Ficci President Sandip Somany said the central bank has also kept liquidity in the surplus mode, and it is now critical for banks to move fast and transmit this ease in policy rate in the form of lower lending rates. 

Besides, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Rajeev Talwar said the repo rate cut will help rejuvenate consumption and increase competitiveness of the producers with reduced cost of capital. However, he noted that at this stage, transmission of the cut in repo rate with an effective reduction in lending rates by the banking sector would be crucial to materialize the benefits at the ground level. He also said “going ahead, we expect repo rate to come down to 5 percent in the coming quarters for enhanced liquidity and availability of credit to the industry especially to the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with a significant reduction in the cost of capital.

According to the Indian Chamber of Commerce, the cut in the repo rate will transmit to cheaper loans which will boost the economy at large, especially sectors such as real estate and automobiles, and spur the latent consumer demand in these segments. It said higher disposable income in the hands of consumer will also fuel the growth in domestic demand going forward. Also, Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India Chairman Ravi Sehgal has suggested that the central bank should also ensure easy credit disbursal to the exporters, especially in the MSME sector and transmission by the banks of the earlier reductions in the lending rates.

© 2026 The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. MoneyWorks4Me ® is a registered trademark of The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd.

×