News

RBI MPC Meeting 2026 LIVE: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced its monetary policy decision today, 8 April 2026, Wednesday. The RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra-led Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held its first bi-monthly policy meeting for FY27 from April 6 to April 8, and the repo rate decision was announced today.

The April RBI MPC meeting came on the backdrop of heightened global geopolitical tensions due to the US-Iran war in the Middle East, which has been going on for more than a month now. The conflict has led to a sharp surge in crude oil prices, which resulted in the steep depreciation of the rupee and its ramifications are likely to be felt across macro variables and financial markets.

However, in a relief, US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire deal, which is expected to halt the American-Israeli attacks in exchange for Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

The RBI’s rate setting panel - Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) - kept repo rates unchanged at 5.25%, and maintained policy stance at ‘Neutral’.

RBI projected FY27 GDP growth at 6.9%. It reduced Q1FY27 growth forecast to 6.8% from 6.9% and Q2FY27 GDP growth estimates to 6.7% from 7% earlier. Economic growth estimates for Q3FY27 and Q4FY27 were at 7% and 7.2%, respectively.

CPI inflation for FY27 has been projected at 4.6%. The central bank maintained Q1FY27 CPI projection at 4.0%, while raising Q2FY27 CPI estimates to 4.4% from 4.2% earlier. Q3FY27 and Q4FY27 CPI inflation projections stood at 5.2% and 4.7%, respectively.

The RBI has already cut the repo rate by a cumulative 125 basis points (bps) since February 2025. In its previous monetary policy, the central bank maintained a status quo on repo rates.

Stay tuned to this segment for live updates on the RBI MPC meeting outcome.

Core inflation print has been a request by market participants, said RBI Governor Malhotra

Monetary Policy Committee is not in a position to say what it will do in the next meeting, said RBI Governor Malhotra.

The various components of inflation and where they are emanating from, are also very important…. The ultimate target is headline inflation and not anything else, says RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra begins his post-policy press conference

RBI proposed to ease banks’ capital adequacy norms by doing away with the requirement for lenders to maintain an investment fluctuation reserve (IFR).

“In view of the developments in the prudential framework over the years, it is proposed to dispense...IFR as an additional buffer,” Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra said in his monetary policy speech.

The Reserve Bank of India also proposed to relax norms for banks to calculate the capital to risk-weighted assets ratio using quarterly earnings.

Banks currently maintain IFR as an additional buffer against depreciation in the value of their investments, subject to mark-to-market (MTM) requirements.

The MPC’s clear commitment to stay proactive and pre-emptive in liquidity support provides comfort. Financial markets have responded more to global market volatility than what the real sector indicators have shown so far. The RBI has demonstrated its ability to tame excessive volatility using multiple instruments, ranging from open market operations to regulatory measures in the forex market. It has kept systemic liquidity in surplus till date despite volatile foreign capital flows, said Dipti Deshpande, Principal Economist, Crisil Ltd.

RBI projected CPI inflation for FY27 at 4.6%. The central bank maintained Q1FY27 CPI projection at 4.0%, while raising Q2FY27 CPI estimates to 4.4% from 4.2% earlier. Q3FY27 and Q4FY27 CPI inflation projections stood at 5.2% and 4.7%, respectively.

The Reserve Bank of India reiterated that its intervention in the foreign exchange market is aimed solely at curbing excessive volatility and not at targeting any specific level of the rupee.

Speaking during the monetary policy announcement, RBI Governor, Sanjay Malhotra said, “Despite the stronger macroeconomic fundamentals, the Indian rupee in the last financial year depreciated more than average in the previous year.... our exchange rate policy remains unchanged. Specifically, intervention in the foreign exchange market is aimed at smoothing excessive and disruptive volatility without targeting any specific level or band of price for the exchange rate.”

The RBI’s decision to maintain the repo rate and its Neutral stance did not come as a surprise and was already priced in. For now, we believe this could be the end of the rate cut cycle, and the RBI will pause rates from here. Although a 2-week ceasefire has been announced, risks persist, posing a downward risk to GDP growth estimates and an upward revision risk to inflation estimates. The RBI has already revised its Q1/Q2 inflation/GDP estimates to reflect the dynamic geopolitical risks. However, any further escalation in the West Asia conflict that negatively impacts inflation or GDP estimates could possibly prompt the regulator to reverse the rate cycle earlier than anticipated, said Naveen Kulkarni, Chief Investment Officer, Axis Securities PMS.

RBI projects FY27 GDP growth at 6.9%. Here are quarterly projections:

Q1FY27: Cut to 6.8% from 6.9%

Q2FY27: Cut to 6.7% from 7%

Q3FY27: At 7%

Q4FY27: At 7.2%

For India, the repo rate pause provides some relief, as imported inflation pressures are lower for now while domestic demand stays strong. By maintaining a neutral stance, the MPC has signalled flexibility to act decisively should the geopolitical shocks or commodity price swings return. Stability in the policy rate helps keep borrowing costs predictable and supports credit flows to households and businesses. Looking ahead, much will depend on how global conditions evolve. If oil stabilizes and inflation eases further, the RBI may gain room to support growth more actively in the coming quarters, said K. H. Patnaik, Chief Ratings Officer, Brickwork Ratings.

RBI decision was largely in line with expectations. From here, the RBI is likely to continue with a data-dependent approach, suggesting an extended pause in rates. The broader policy stance is also likely to remain neutral, although liquidity conditions may continue to be managed in an accommodative manner. Overall, this policy mix appears neutral to marginally supportive for equities, fixed income and the foreign exchange market, said Sujan Hajra, Chief Economist & Executive Director, Anand Rathi Group.

In order to promote ease of doing business for MSMEs and to encourage their greater participation on Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS), RBI proposed to dispense with the requirement of due diligence of MSMEs while onboarding on TReDS platforms. A comprehensive review of other extant instructions has also been undertaken, and draft directions will be issued shortly for public consultation.

At present, only banks and standalone primary dealers are eligible to participate in the term money market, with certain prudential limits. With a view to further enhance the depth of participation and liquidity in the term money market segment, RBI has decided to expand the participant base in the term money market segment to include non-bank participants viz., AIFIs, NBFCs, including housing finance companies, companies, etc.

RBI also enhanced the borrowing limit in the term money market for standalone primary dealers.

India’s merchandise exports contracted by 0.2% during January-February 2026 on a year-on-year (y-o-y) basis, impacted by export contraction in key markets. Merchandise imports recorded a double-digit growth of 22.2%, largely driven by higher gold imports, resulting in a widening of the trade deficit.

Expected robustness in services exports and inward remittance receipts during Q4:2025-26 should keep India’s current account deficit moderate and within the sustainable level in 2025-26. Rising global uncertainties and elevated prices of key energy commodities pose some upside risks to India’s current account deficit in 2026-27, said RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra.

Further escalation of the conflict, its continuation over a wider geographical spread and uncertainty regarding the damage to the energy infrastructure, apart from weather related events, pose downside risks to the domestic growth outlook, MPC statement said.

The MPC noted that the intensity and the duration of the conflict in West Asia and the resultant damage to the energy and other infrastructure add risk to the inflation and growth outlooks. However, the fundamentals of the Indian economy are on a stronger footing, providing it with greater resilience to withstand shocks now than in the past. The economy is confronted with a supply shock. It is prudent to wait and watch the changing circumstances and the evolving growth-inflation outlook.

RBI projects CPI inflation for FY27 at 4.6%. Here are quarterly estimates:

Q1FY27 at 4.0%

Q2FY27 at 4.4%

Q3FY27 at 5.2%

Q4FY27 at 4.7%

The real GDP growth for last year is estimated at 7.6%. This corroborates the underlying strong momentum in economic activity supported by robust consumption and investment amidst supportive policy measures, ongoing structural reforms and favourable financial conditions. Going forward, elevated energy and other commodity prices as also shocks to the availability of inputs due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, are likely to impact growth this year. The government has been proactive in ensuring the supply of inputs across critical sectors to minimise the impact of supply chain disruptions. On the other hand, sustained momentum in the services sector, the persisting impact of GST rationalisation which was carried out last year and the healthy balance sheets of financial institutions and corporates should continue to support economic activity, said RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra.

The Indian stock market traded with strong gains amid the announcement of the RBI policy. The Sensex jumped 2,659.11 points, or 3.56%, to 77,275.69, while the Nifty 50 was trading 785.05 points, or 3.40%, higher at 23,908.70. The Bank Nifty index jumped 2,635.10 points, or 5.00%, to 55,351.35.

RBI Governor announced three measures to promote ease of doing business

- To facilitate better utilisation of bank boards time.

- A similar consolidation exercise (to the master circular of 9,000 regulatory instructions into 238 master directions) has been done for supervisory instructions

- To facilitate ease of doing business by MSMEs

System liquidity, as measured by the net position under the LAF, stood at an average daily surplus of ₹2.3 lakh crore since the last MPC meeting. G-SEC yields remained largely rangebound with a softening bias in February, but thereafter, on account of the ongoing conflict, they hardened as in the global yields along with the rise in energy prices. Transmission in the credit market has remained satisfactory to ensure sufficient liquidity in the banking system. Going ahead, we will continue to be proactive and preemptive in liquidity management and ensure sufficient liquidity in the banking system to meet the productive requirements of the economy, said RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra.

Here are policy rates after today’s RBI policy

RBI projects India’s GDP growth to be 6.9% in FY27. Here are quarterly projections:

India remains attractive destination for greenfield FDI projects, said RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra

RBI projected CPI inflation for FY27 at 4.6%

RBI estimates real GDP growth for FY27 at 6.9%

The upside risks to inflation have increased, said RBI Governor Malhotra. However, he added that the fundamentals of the Indian economy are on a stronger footing.

Real GDP growth for last year estimated at 7.6%, said RBI Governor.

The disruptions in energy markets may adversely impact India’s fiscal deficit, said RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra.

The RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra-led Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and maintained the policy stance as ‘Neutral’.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra-led MPC keeps repo rate unchanged at 5.25%

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra begins his monetary policy speech

Indian government bonds surged as crude oil prices plunged after the US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire, resulting in bullish momentum before the RBI policy. The benchmark 6.48% 2035 bond yield was at 6.9177% after ending at 7.0458% on Tuesday.

Bank Nifty jumped nearly 5% ahead of the RBI policy announcement. Bank Nifty index was up 2,515.30 points, or 4.77%, at 55,231.55, with all its constituent banks trading in the green. IndusInd Bank, Bank of Baroda, AU Small Finance Bank, Union Bank of India and HDFC Bank were the top index gainers.

Markets have already started comparing the current situation with 2013’s ‘taper tantrum’, when the Fed surprised global financial markets, particularly EM economies by tightening policy. The resultant outflows from EM economies deteriorated their external accounts and exerted pressure on currencies. Hitesh Suvarna believes the current situation is mainly a supply-side issue while the event unfolding during ‘taper tantrum’ was due to the miscommunication by the Fed on policy tightening—mainly financial

The RBI’s notification to banks to reduce onshore rupee positions is expected to catalyse short-term stability in the currency, said Radhika Rao. G-Sec borrowing calendar for 1HFY27 was pegged at ₹8.2 lakh crore, with share of issuance in less than 10-year bucket increasing in line with the market expectations. While the calendar was a positive development for bond markets, yields stayed firm due to geopolitical risks, heavy SDL borrowings and potential fiscal pressure.

The US futures market is no longer factoring in any rate cuts in 2026 versus two–three rate cuts in the beginning of the year.

Radhika Rao, Senior Economist & Executive Director at DBS Bank, expects RBI policymakers to emphasize their capacity to contain domestic risks while refraining from signaling a clearly hawkish policy trajectory.

“The RBI is likely to prioritise financial stability and liquidity conditions, particularly in an environment of global monetary uncertainty, where premature moves could trigger volatility in capital flows and exchange rates. The policy outlook will, nonetheless, shift from a “benign inflation–strong growth” scenario to a more “cautious balancing act”, where the central bank may need to respond to renewed inflationary pressures while sustaining growth,” said Rao.

The Bank Nifty index jumped 4% ahead of the RBI policy today. Bank Nifty index was up 2,103.80 points, or 3.99%, at 54,831.15. All the constituents of the index were trading in the green.

The Indian stock market opened with strong gains on Wednesday ahead of the announcement of RBI policy today. The rally in domestic equities followed gains in global markets after the US-Iran ceasefire deal.

The BSE Sensex opened 2,674.05 points, or 3.58%, higher at 77,290.63, while the NSE Nifty 50 jumped 731.50 points, or 3.16%, to open at 23,855.15.

Systemic LAF liquidity is ample at ₹3.7 lakh crore, which is reflected in the operating rate trending below the policy corridor (4.78%); however, hardening benchmark yields reflect the bond market’s fiscal concerns. Hitesh Suvarna believes the RBI will navigate this supply-side disruption via proactive liquidity management measures (OMOs, VRR, VRRRs). Markets would look for the governor’s commentary on the West Asia conflict’s fallout on growth and inflation, and his views on currency and fiscal management.

The Indian rupee jumped 36 paise to open at 92.64 against the US dollar ahead of the RBI policy today. The gains in the local currency came after crude oil prices crashed amid the US-Iran ceasefire deal announcement.

Here’s how market dynamics have changed overnight ahead of RBI policy today:

Trump-Iran 14-Day Ceasefire: US President Trump announced to suspend military strikes on Iran, following a two-week ceasefire agreed upon, brokered largely by Pakistan.

Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz: As part of the US-Iran ceasefire deal, Tehran has agreed to a 10-point peace plan, crucially including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. This removes the immediate threat of a total global energy blockade.

Crude Oil Price Crash: Following the US-Iran ceasefire news, global crude oil prices suffered one of their largest single-day crashes. Brent crude plunged over 13% to trade around $95 per barrel, while WTI fell over 15%.

Global Risk-On Rally: Asian markets and US stock futures jumped as the “war premium” evaporated.

Islamabad Peace Talks: Official negotiations between Washington and Tehran are scheduled to begin this Friday in Islamabad. Markets will be monitoring any “pre-talk” rhetoric for signs of a long-term resolution.

For commercial real estate, steady interest rates and borrowing costs support sustained leasing momentum and long-term investment decisions, thereby increasing demand for office space and supporting new developments. Easier credit availability attracts both individual and institutional investors, driving real estate growth. The RBI in the previous MPC announcement has been supportive of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) allowing them to borrow directly from banks, although with specific safeguards. Hence, we expect a rate cut to have a pronounced impact on the real estate sector, easing borrowing costs and improving credit availability, leading to consumer demand to pick up significantly, said Manas Mehrotra, Founder, 315Work Avenue.

The backdrop for the MPC has flipped from a goldilocks scenario to one where economies globally, including India, are impacted by the severe supply disruptions caused by the month-long conflict in the Middle East, economists said. While the global central banks are already deliberating on curbing inflationary pressures in their respective economies through policy tightening, the situation in India is much more manageable when it comes to inflation.

Considering the anticipated inflationary pressures over coming months in India would be a result of supplyside issues that monetary policy tightening cannot address effectively, Hitesh Suvarna, Economist at JM Financial, expects a status quo on policy rates along with proactive liquidity management measures. He expects the RBI to moderate growth expectations to 6.5–6.8% and will likely raise inflation expectations to 3.5–4% for FY27E.

The Indian stock market is expected to open higher on Wednesday ahead of the announcement of RBI policy today. A rally in global markets following the US-Iran two-week ceasefire deal is likely to support sentiment in the domestic equities. The trends on Gift Nifty also signal a gap-up start for the benchmark indices, Nifty 50 and Sensex today. Gift Nifty was trading around 23,801 level, a premium of nearly 650 points from the Nifty futures’ previous close.

Vishal Goenka, Co-Founder, IndiaBonds.com, argued that if the current situation persists, the RBI may eventually have to consider a combination of rate action and tighter liquidity measures. He noted that such a move could trigger further pressure on risk assets and push up short-term yields, though it may also serve as a pre-emptive response to rising inflation risks.

The Indian rupee is expected to open higher on Wednesday ahead of the RBI policy decision, buoyed by a crash in crude oil prices and the rally in Asian currencies after the US and Iran agreed for a two-week ceasefire.

The rupee is likely to open in the 92.40-92.50 range versus the US dollar, having settled at 93.0075 on Tuesday, according to a Reuters report.

Catch all the Business News , Market News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.

Download the Mint app and read premium stories