RBI's comfort with rupee fall shows it's a flexible inflation targeter now

Barring unforeseen developments, we may not see the next rate hike before February 2020

Every analyst and her aunt were expecting a quarter percentage point rate hike on Friday but the monetary policy committee of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) opted to maintain the status quo.     

The stance of the policy, however, has been changed -- from "neutral" to "a calibrated tightening" -- keeping in mind the objective of achieving the medium-term target of 4 per cent retail inflation with +/- 2 per cent band. 

Contrary to widespread expectations, the Indian central bank has not hiked the rate because it sees lower inflation in the coming months. India's retail inflation dropped