RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday (Feb 6, 2026) that the apex bank will keep a distance from routine movements in the foreign exchange market and step in only if volatility turns excessive. The RBI continued the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent after it announced the monetary policy decision.&nbsp;The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which convened between February 4 and 6, unanimously decided to hold rates unchanged. Governor Malhotra reaffirmed that the Reserve Bank of India does not aim for any particular exchange rate level for the rupee. “Whether it is an up movement or down—depreciation or appreciation—we generally stay away,” he said, and added that RBI will only intervene in the event of abnormal volatility or a speculative build-up, according to Firstpost.&nbsp;The governor confirmed that there are currently no signs of speculative pressure, even though the rupee has strengthened in recent sessions. The RBI, he added, will continue to let market forces guide the movement of the currency. Following the policy announcement, the rupee traded in a narrow range. After opening near 90.23 against the US dollar, it was quoted at around 90.70 by 2 pm, compared with its previous close of 90.36.<h3>Rise of the rupee after the India-US trade agreement&nbsp;</h3>Earlier in the week, the rupee saw a sharp rise after news of a trade agreement between India and the US. However, ongoing demand for dollars from domestic importers limited the rally and kept the currency from crossing the Rs 90-per-dollar threshold.&nbsp;Vivek Iyer, Partner and Financial Services Risk Leader at Grant Thornton Bharat, stated that the policy marks a major shift in emphasis. “Taken together, the MPC announcements signal a clear pivot by the RBI from headline monetary easing to targeted regulatory and structural interventions. By holding rates steady while rolling out a wide set of non-rate measures, the RBI is reinforcing that credit transmission, consumer protection and market depth can be strengthened without immediately relying on rate cuts,” he said.&nbsp;Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/rbi-holds-repo-rate-at-5-25-raises-fy26-growth-forecast-to-7-4-1770366406050">RBI holds repo rate at 5.25%, raises FY26 growth forecast to 7.4%</a>

The governor confirmed that there are currently no signs of speculative pressure, even though the rupee has strengthened in recent sessions. And added that the RBI will continue to let market forces guide the movement of the currency.

RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday (Feb 6, 2026) that the apex bank will keep a distance from routine movements in the foreign exchange market and step in only if volatility turns excessive. The RBI continued the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent after it announced the monetary policy decision. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which convened between February 4 and 6, unanimously decided to hold rates unchanged. Governor Malhotra reaffirmed that the Reserve Bank of India does not aim for any particular exchange rate level for the rupee. “Whether it is an up movement or down—depreciation or appreciation—we generally stay away,” he said, and added that RBI will only intervene in the event of abnormal volatility or a speculative build-up, according to Firstpost. The governor confirmed that there are currently no signs of speculative pressure, even though the rupee has strengthened in recent sessions. The RBI, he added, will continue to let market forces guide the movement of the currency. Following the policy announcement, the rupee traded in a narrow range. After opening near 90.23 against the US dollar, it was quoted at around 90.70 by 2 pm, compared with its previous close of 90.36. Rise of the rupee after the India-US trade agreement Earlier in the week, the rupee saw a sharp rise after news of a trade agreement between India and the US. However, ongoing demand for dollars from domestic importers limited the rally and kept the currency from crossing the Rs 90-per-dollar threshold. Vivek Iyer, Partner and Financial Services Risk Leader at Grant Thornton Bharat, stated that the policy marks a major shift in emphasis. “Taken together, the MPC announcements signal a clear pivot by the RBI from headline monetary easing to targeted regulatory and structural interventions. By holding rates steady while rolling out a wide set of non-rate measures, the RBI is reinforcing that credit transmission, consumer protection and market depth can be strengthened without immediately relying on rate cuts,” he said. Also read: RBI holds repo rate at 5.25%, raises FY26 growth forecast to 7.4%

The governor confirmed that there are currently no signs of speculative pressure, even though the rupee has strengthened in recent sessions. And added that the RBI will continue to let market forces guide the movement of the currency.

RBI to stay out of rupee moves, step in only during excessive volatility: Governor Malhotra

India&rsquo;s retail inflation, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), eased to 3.16 per cent in April, from 3.34 per cent in March. It is the lowest year-on-year inflation since July 2019, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics &amp; Programme Implementation on May 13.
The moderation in inflation was primarily driven by a significant decline in food prices. Food inflation fell sharply to 1.78 per cent in April from 2.69 per cent in March&mdash;a decline of 91 basis points. This is the lowest level of food inflation recorded since October 2021.
The steep decline is attributed to lower inflation in vegetables, pulses, fruits, meat and fish, personal care items, and cereals.
Rural inflation slowed more sharply, falling to 2.92 per cent in April from 3.25 per cent in March. Rural food inflation dropped to 1.85 per cent from 2.82 per cent. In urban areas, inflation dipped to 3.36 per cent from 3.43 per cent, while urban food inflation saw a more pronounced decline to 1.64 per cent from 2.48 per cent in March.
Kerala witnessed the highest inflation at 5.94 per cent year-on-year, followed by Karnataka (4.26 per cent), Jammu &amp; Kashmir (4.25 per cent) and Punjab (4.09 per cent), while Telangana and Delhi saw the lowest inflation at 1.26 per cent and 1.77 per cent, respectively.
Among key components, housing inflation remained stable at 3.00 per cent compared to 3.03 per cent in March, while education inflation ticked up to 4.13 per cent from 3.98 per cent. Health inflation remained flat at 4.25 per cent.
But notably, fuel and light inflation advanced to 2.92 per cent, from 1.42 per cent the previous month. Transport and communication inflation rose to 3.73 per cent from 3.36 per cent.
<h2 dir="ltr">RBI&rsquo;s target holds steady</h2>
The Reserve Bank of India, which has been mandated to ensure inflation remains at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side, has cut the key interest rate by 50 basis points in two tranches (February and April) to 6 per cent underpinned by easing inflation.
The central bank has projected the CPI inflation for the financial year 2025-26 at 4 per cent, with Q1 at 3.6 per cent, Q2 at 3.9 per cent, Q3 at 3.8 per cent, and Q4 at 4.4 per cent.
With inflation trends remaining well within the target range, market expectations for a potential rate cut in the upcoming meeting of RBI&rsquo;s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) in June have strengthened.
&nbsp;

Business & Economy: The moderation in inflation was primarily driven by a decline in food prices. Food inflation fell to 1.78 per cent, the lowest since October 2021.

India’s retail inflation, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), eased to 3.16 per cent in April, from 3.34 per cent in March. It is the lowest year-on-year inflation since July 2019, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation on May 13. The moderation in inflation was primarily driven by a significant decline in food prices. Food inflation fell sharply to 1.78 per cent in April from 2.69 per cent in March—a decline of 91 basis points. This is the lowest level of food inflation recorded since October 2021. The steep decline is attributed to lower inflation in vegetables, pulses, fruits, meat and fish, personal care items, and cereals. Rural inflation slowed more sharply, falling to 2.92 per cent in April from 3.25 per cent in March. Rural food inflation dropped to 1.85 per cent from 2.82 per cent. In urban areas, inflation dipped to 3.36 per cent from 3.43 per cent, while urban food inflation saw a more pronounced decline to 1.64 per cent from 2.48 per cent in March. Kerala witnessed the highest inflation at 5.94 per cent year-on-year, followed by Karnataka (4.26 per cent), Jammu & Kashmir (4.25 per cent) and Punjab (4.09 per cent), while Telangana and Delhi saw the lowest inflation at 1.26 per cent and 1.77 per cent, respectively. Among key components, housing inflation remained stable at 3.00 per cent compared to 3.03 per cent in March, while education inflation ticked up to 4.13 per cent from 3.98 per cent. Health inflation remained flat at 4.25 per cent. But notably, fuel and light inflation advanced to 2.92 per cent, from 1.42 per cent the previous month. Transport and communication inflation rose to 3.73 per cent from 3.36 per cent. RBI’s target holds steady The Reserve Bank of India, which has been mandated to ensure inflation remains at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side, has cut the key interest rate by 50 basis points in two tranches (February and April) to 6 per cent underpinned by easing inflation. The central bank has projected the CPI inflation for the financial year 2025-26 at 4 per cent, with Q1 at 3.6 per cent, Q2 at 3.9 per cent, Q3 at 3.8 per cent, and Q4 at 4.4 per cent. With inflation trends remaining well within the target range, market expectations for a potential rate cut in the upcoming meeting of RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) in June have strengthened.

India’s retail inflation hits a 6-year low as food prices cool

RBI keeps repo rate unchanged: On Thursday, India's central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) finally applied the brakes on increasing the repo rate by keeping it unchanged at 6.

RBI keeps repo rate unchanged: On Thursday, India's central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) finally applied the brakes on increasing the repo rate by keeping it unchanged at 6.5 per cent. The pause came after the central bank had announced six hikes since May last year to a cumulative 250 basis points. Presiding over the RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said although the repo rate was unchanged, it could be altered should the situation warrant so. “While we have kept the policy rate unchanged, this decision was taken based on our assessment of the macroeconomic and financial conditions with reference to information available up to today,” Das told the reporters after the meeting. “Overall inflation is above the target and the current policy rate still remains accommodative. It is now necessary to evaluate the action of past rate hikes." WATCH | Is the Indian Rupee challenging the Dollar's dominance in global trade? × India's central bank is wary of the rising uncertainty in international markets and inflation pressures. It has projected the inflation to stand at 5.1 per cent and 5.4 per cent in Q1, Q2 respectively. Notably, worried due to the global indicators and increasing inflation, the MPC last year in an unscheduled meeting in May raised rates for the first time by 40 basis points. The trend continued in June, August and September when the committee increased repo rates by a combined 150 points. The last two hikes came in December 2022 and February 2023 with MPC hiking the rates by 35 basis points and 25 basis points respectively. ALSO READ | RBI hikes repo rate by 25 bps in Monetary Policy 2023: What is repo rate, reverse repo rate & monetary policy? What is repo rate? When commercial banks loan by selling their securities to the central bank, the RBI charges them an interest rate. This interest rate is called the repo rate in the monetary policy. Lower interest rates make it easier for individuals and businesses to borrow money to invest in new economic activities. India Inc cheers RBI, terms decision ‘prudent’ move Meanwhile, Indian industry cheered RBI’s stance of keeping the key interest rate unchanged, terming it a "prudent" move in the wake of headwinds emanating from global banking stress. The industry honchos said the move will improve business sentiments by containing the rise in borrowing costs. Industry bodies cautioned that any further hike in the benchmark repo rate at this juncture would have affected India's economic growth even as domestic demand impulses remain healthy. "The industry body agrees with the central bank's observation that the lagged impact of the past rate hikes should be allowed to percolate into the system, and not stifle demand by further rate hikes," said CII president Sanjiv Bajaj. The market sentiment was also buoyed by the RBI announcement and the Sensex closed up by 143 points at 59,832, while the Nifty settled at 17,599 at the end of the day's trade. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

RBI applies brakes on repo rate hike, keeps it unchanged at 6.5%

The newly-constituted Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank will begin its three-day deliberations on Wednesday amid expectations that the central bank this time around may refrain from changing the benchmark lending rates.

RBI'S MPC panel likely to hold rates

rbi-mpc

Rbi Mpc, News on Rbi Mpc, stories on Rbi Mpc, articles on Rbi Mpc, Rbi Mpc stories at Wion, Rbi Mpc news, Rbi Mpc latest news

rbi mpc

RBI to stay out of rupee moves, step in only during excessive volatility: Governor Malhotra

India’s retail inflation hits a 6-year low as food prices cool

RBI applies brakes on repo rate hike, keeps it unchanged at 6.5%

RBI'S MPC panel likely to hold rates