The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) began its bi-monthly policy review on Wednesday, December 3, at a time when the economy is sending out mixed signals. After delivering a cumulative 100-basis-point repo rate cut across three rounds since February, the MPC has held the benchmark repo rate steady at 5.5% from August onwards. With the policy announcement due today, economists are betting on a small 25-basis-point cut, though there’s still a fair amount of caution in the air.
Inflation has cooled dramatically over the past few months, and the prices have eased to levels not seen in years. The headline CPI in October slipped to nearly 0.25%, all thanks to softer food prices and weaker input costs. This sharp drop has given the RBI more room to work with, and even Governor Sanjay Malhotra previously hinted recently that there is scope for more easing. However, core inflation remains sticky at above 4%, which could make the central bank think twice before rushing into another cut.
At the same time, the economy is growing far faster than anyone expected. India surprised with 8.2% GDP growth in the second quarter. For the first half of FY26, growth has averaged around 8%, which led to several agencies, including Fitch, revising their full-year forecasts upward. Because of this some economists believe the RBI may prefer to step back and avoid adding more fuel to an already energetic economy.
But the biggest wildcard this time is the rupee. The currency has slipped past 90 to the dollar, a psychological and economic pressure point. A weaker rupee raises the cost of imports and could easily bring imported inflation back into the system. A rate cut, in such a situation, risks pushing the currency down further, which is exactly what the RBI does not want.
About the RBI Monetary Policy Committee
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is a six‑member statutory body of the Reserve Bank of India formed in 2016 that sets key policy interest rates, mainly the repo rate, to achieve the inflation target while supporting growth. The current six members of the Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) are Sanjay Malhotra (Governor, RBI), Indranil Bhattacharyya (Executive Director in charge of monetary policy), Poonam Gupta (Deputy Governor in charge of monetary policy, RBI), Nagesh Kumar (External member, Director & CEO, Institute for Studies in Industrial Development (ISID)), Saugata Bhattacharya (External member, economist), and Ram Singh (External member, Director, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi).
LIVE Feed
Dec 05, 2025, 6:43 am IST
RBI MPC Meet October Recap
In the October 2025 RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting which was held from September 29 to October 1st, the RBI kept policy rates unchanged at 5.5% and sharply lowered the inflation forecast and kept a “neutral” policy stance.
SDF remained at 5.25%, and MSF/Bank Rate at 5.75%, with CRR unchanged at 3%. CPI inflation for FY 2025‑26 was cut to about 2.6%, well below the mid‑point of the 4% target band, helped by GST rationalisation that reduced prices of many items.The Real GDP growth for FY 2025‑26 was also projected around 6.8%.
Dec 05, 2025, 6:42 am IST
Welcome to our RBI MPC Live Blog
As RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra and the Monetary Policy Committee gets ready to announce their policy decision today we will track every development. Stay with us as we bring you minute-by-minute updates, expert reactions, market moves, and everything you need to know about the RBI’s today’s outcome.
