GDP growth may exceed RBI's projection of 7.4% in 2018-19: Economic affairs secy

Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg Friday said the GDP growth is expected to be higher than the RBI's projection of 7.4% for the current fiscal.

The Reserve Bank in its fourth bi-monthly policy review retained GDP forecast for 2018-19 at 7.4% based on an overall assessment. "Government welcomes MPC statement and decision to keep the rates unchanged. Government's assessment of inflation is in line with the MPC's assessment. We believe growth should turn out to be higher than that projected by MPC (monetary policy committee)," he tweeted. Later, the finance ministry in a statement said the status quo decision by the MPC is in consonance with the government's assessment of inflation and growth going forward and for achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4% within a band of +/- 2%, while supporting growth.

"The government welcomes the MPC's assessment and notes its decision to maintain the Policy Rate," the statement said. On the basis of an assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation, the RBI maintained the status quo by keeping key policy rate unchanged at 6.5%. The projections of inflation for 2018-19 and first quarter of 2019-20 have been revised downwards from the August resolution. The RBI lowered its retail inflation projection for the second half of the current fiscal at 3.9-4.5% mainly because of an unusually benign trend in food prices.