For the first time the common man has nothing to look forward to in the credit policy though the RBI released `32,000 crore into the banking system through a half per cent cut in the cash reserve ratio (the cash that banks have to keep as a percentage of their deposits with the RBI) in the 3Q Monetary Policy Review announced by the RBI governor, Dr D. Subbarao, on Tuesday.
All other policy rates were kept unchanged. People were expecting a rate cut so that they would get relief in their home loans and EMIs. But on Tuesday no banker was willing to talk about where interest rates would go.
Ms Chanda Kochhar, managing director and CEO of ICICI Bank and India’s most powerful private sector banker, said “the lending rates would depend upon the demand for credit”.
Mr K.R. Kamath, chairman and managing director of Punjab National bank, said that they would have to wait and watch how liquidity, credit offtake and deposit growth pan out before deciding on interest rates.
RBI concerned over declining investments; cuts CRR by 5%: Business