Deutsche sees Rajan cutting rates by 0.25% each next week &Aug
Press Trust of India Mumbai Germany's Deutsche Bank joined the chorus of rate cut-callers today saying it expects Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan to effect a quarter percentage point reduction in the policy rates on Tuesday.
"With most of the conditions laid down by the RBI in its April guidance have been met, we expect Rajan to cut the repo rate by 25 bps Tuesday and an equal amount in August, which would be the last rate cut in this cycle. He will find the current state of the economy and outlook for inflation, growth, and reforms calling for easing," it said in a note.
Despite a high GDP projections, the report said a wide range of data such as factory production, trade, capacity utilisation, sales, investment, credit growth, wages, revenue receipts, and corporate earnings paint an economy still struggling to show any meaningful recovery and in all likelihood characterised by a large output gap.
The report further said the best indicator for the RBI should be the inflation numbers, even though food and fuel may not remain as favourable as they have been in the past year.
"RBI's inflation targeting glide path - 5 per cent by January next-appears safe," the report said, adding, on the fiscal reforms front too, Rajan will find the developments so far this year broadly in line with his wish-list.
"Against these backgrounds, we think the case for further monetary easing is rather compelling," the report said, adding, "from a cost-benefit perspective, there is little to worry in terms of unintended consequences from a rate cut. There is little sign of exuberance in credit growth, asset prices no longer seem in danger of overshooting, real rates will remain high even if rates are cut by 50 bps, and demand is certainly not at risk of over-heating.