RBI Monetary Policy Meeting LIVE: RBI reduces repo rate to 5.25%

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra informed that merchandise exports contracted year-on-year in October 2025 while imports rose for the second straight month, widening the trade deficit. "Strong services exports and remittances, however, are expected to keep the current account deficit modest. Gross FDI grew at a robust pace in the first half of the year, and net FDI increased due to lower repatriation despite higher outward flows. FPI saw net outflows of 0.7 billion US dollars so far, mainly from equities, while ECB and non-resident deposit flows moderated. India’s forex reserves stood at 686 billion US dollars as of November 28, providing more than 11 months of import cover. Overall, India’s external sector remains resilient, and external financing needs can be met comfortably. System liquidity averaged a surplus of Rs 1.5 lakh crore since the MPC’s last meeting in October,” he said.
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra says, "... The Reserve Bank has decided to conduct OMO (Open Market Operations) purchases of government securities of Rs 1 lakh crore and a three-year dollar-rupee buy-sell swap of 5 billion US dollars this month in December to inject further durable liquidity into the system."
In his Monetary Policy Statement RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra says, “We look back at the year so far with satisfaction. The economy witnessed robust growth and benign inflation. Since the October policy, the Indian economy has witnessed rapid disinflation, with inflation dipping to a mere 0.3% in October 2025. Real GDP growth accelerated to 8.2% in Q2, aided by strong festive spending and rationalisation of GST rates. Inflation at a benign 2.2% and growth at 8% for the first half of the year presents a rare Goldilocks period.”
The benchmark indices on Friday morning opened flat. The sensex opened at 85,194.26, down 71.06 points. It moved up to 85,269.40 points (0.02%) by 9:40 am. Meanwhile, while the NSE Nifty50 opened 4.75 points down. It moved up 0.02% to 26,039.55 by 9:40 AM.
The RBI's latest policy announcement after the MPC meeting will come barely 4 days before the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting on December 9-10. As per a Goldman Sachs research, the US federal bank may bring in a 25-basis-point cut. The study further said the US may see an economic growth at 2%-2.5% in 2026. The study attributed the growth rate to reduced impact from tariffs and the Donald Trump administration's tax cuts and "easier financial conditions".
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is a statutory body within the Reserve Bank of India responsible for deciding the policy repo rate and guiding the country’s monetary policy to ensure overall economic stability. The committee’s core objective is to keep prices stable in the country while supporting economic growth, with a government-assigned target of maintaining CPI inflation at 4%, within a tolerance band of plus or minus 2%.
RBI MPC structure
The MPC is made up of six members: three from the RBI, including the Governor, and three external experts chosen by the central government.
Each member is appointed for a four-year term. No member can be re-appointed to the committee.
The RBI Governor heads the panel. He has a deciding vote, if the committee is split.
The group meets at least four times annually, and its resolutions are released publicly to ensure transparency and accountability.
The RBI in October had kept the repo rate remain unchanged at 5.5 percent with a neutral stance . This was the second consecutive time that the repo rates had been kept unchanged.
The central bank had then announced that the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) stands at 3%, Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rate at 5.25% Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) at 5.75%, and Bank Rate at 5.75%.
The RBI MPC had also hiked its its FY26 growth forecast to 6.8% and lowered the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation projection to 2.6% in its October meeting.
India’s equity benchmarks are poised for a positive start on Friday, even as investors remain split over what the Reserve Bank of India might signal on rates amid strong economic momentum and a weakening rupee, reported news agency Reuters. Gift Nifty futures were at 26,184.5 points at 6:55 AM, suggesting the Nifty 50 would open above Thursday’s closing level of 26,033.75.
The RBI will announce its policy outcome at 10 AM. A Reuters survey had earlier indicated a 25-basis-point cut in the repo rate, a view formed before the release of last month’s GDP numbers. India’s economy expanded at its quickest pace in a year and a half during the September quarter, supported by firm consumer demand, while retail inflation eased to a record low in October. Hopes of an immediate rate cut have softened after the strong growth print and the rupee’s recent slide.
The RBI repo rate and other decisions taken at the Monetary Policy meeting over three days will be announced at a press briefing by RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra at 10 AM today. The announcement will be live streamed on the RBI's YouTube channel. a post-briefing press conference will be held at 12 noon. You can also watch the repo rate announcement and reactions and analyses from various quarters live on The Indian Express.
Ahead of announcing its decision on repo rate taken at the MPC meeting, the Reserve Bank on Thursday released a clarification on how foreign bank branches in India should handle prudential treatment for exposures to their own group entities. The announcement came alongside several amendments to existing regulatory frameworks. The changes introduced to the Large Exposures Framework (LEF) and the rules governing intragroup transactions and exposures outline updates to the methods used for calculating both LEF and intragroup exposure limits. The central bank also noted that lenders must put in place clear policies to manage concentration risks tied to individual counterparties, interconnected groups, and specific economic sectors. Additionally, banks are expected to maintain systems that can track and mitigate risks arising from significant exposures to very large borrowers.
The Reserve Bank of India will announce its bi-monthly monetary policy on Friday, December 5, with Governor Sanjay Malhotra presenting the conclusions of the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) three-day deliberations. The review comes at a moment when inflation is cooling, economic growth is picking up pace, the rupee has slipped past 90 against the US dollar, and global uncertainties continue to linger.
The central bank has already lowered the repo rate by a total of 100 basis points this year, spread across three cuts since February as CPI inflation moved downward. Governor Malhotra had signalled last month that there was still “scope for further reduction.” India continues to aim for retail inflation of 4%, with a tolerance range of two percentage points on either side.
The RBI is also likely to revise its growth outlook upward following stronger-than-anticipated numbers in the first half of the year. In October, the bank had lifted its FY26 GDP growth estimate to 6.8% from the earlier 6.5%.