When Will Inflation Come Down? Not Before December, Says RBI Governor

Pic courtesy Mint

New Delhi: For Indian households reeling under rising prices of essential commodities, there is unlikely to be any immediate relief.

According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das, inflation may go up and remain above the upper limit of tolerance band of 2% to 6% till December 2022 before it is contained.

“Until December, CPI (Consumer Price Index) inflation is expected to remain higher than the upper tolerance level. Thereafter, it is expected to go below 6 per cent as per our current projections,” Das said.

Inflation is projected to go below 6% in the fourth quarter of 2022-23 only, he told The Times of India.

The RBI top boss said the surge in inflation is primarily because of global factors like resurfacing of COVID-19 cases and supply-chain disruptions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He pointed out that the central bank has been taking rate actions to deal with rising inflation from April.

On a positive note, the governor said with GDP exceeding the FY20 levels and other high-frequency indicators showing improvement, India’s economy is steadily recovering.

“The revival of economic activity continues to be steady and is gaining traction. GDP has exceeded 2019-20 levels and, from April 2022 onwards, many high-frequency indicators that we monitor are showing steady improvement. The economy is back on track,” he said.