HPBOSE 10th result 2020 Highlights | Himachal Pradesh Board Exam results declared; girls outshine boys with 71.5% vs 64.9%

12.00 pm: The RBI's decision to augment liquidity in the system will go a long way in helping banks cut rates further. The long-standing demand to bring the system to liquidity-neutral will help ease rates in the money markets, even as bankers say it will take time to percolate through their cost of deposits, and thereby lending rates.

12.00 pm: The RBI's decision to augment liquidity in the system will go a long way in helping banks cut rates further. The long-standing demand to bring the system to liquidity-neutral will help ease rates in the money markets, even as bankers say it will take time to percolate through their cost of deposits, and thereby lending rates.

11.53 am: "We welcome the RBI's decision to cut interest rates," says Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha, adding that the government has and will continue to take a number of steps to create further headroom for rate cuts.

11.48 am: The governor just made an eloquent explanation over why he is against the name-and-shame policy for defaulters that will have to be heard in its entirety. The crux of his argument: "Not all defaults are wilful in nature and a fishing expedition could hinder businesses' risk taking abilities in future."

11.45 am: Rajan touches upon the NPA question, cautions against castigating all lending decisions taken in the past to be looked back "with 20:20 hindsight vision" and questioned.

11.40 am: In its recent monetary easing cycle, the RBI has so far cut rates by a total of 150 basis points. The repo rate of 6.5 percent was last seen in 2011.

11.35 am: "Beside the headline policy rate, which was in line, a range of factors will determine financing conditions in India including liquidity provision and progress towards cleaning up banks’ balance sheets," says Marie Diron, Senior Vice President, Sovereign Risk Group, Moody’s Investors Service. "The latter is a multi-year process, the success of which will be key to unlock lending and investment in India. In turn this would contribute sustained robust growth."

11.29 am: At the press conference, Rajan says he is confident that the expiry of lock-in of FCNR deposits will not disturb the banking system's liquidity conditions. Rajan had started the FCNR window upon taking charge in September to attract foreign assets to stem the rupee fall.

With the lock-in ending later this year, analysts expect outflows to the tune of USD 30 billion to take place.

11.26 am: The GVA growth projection for 2016-17 is accordingly retained at 7.6 percent, with risks evenly balanced around it, the RBI says.

11.22 am: On the issue of monetary policy transmission, the RBI says: "The reduction in small savings rates announced in March 2016, the substantial refinements in the liquidity management framework announced in this policy review and the introduction of the marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR) should improve transmission and magnify the effects of the current policy rate cut."

11.19 am: The stock market, pining for a 50 bps rate cut, is continuing to trade in the red. The bond yield too has fallen only marginally (down 2 basis points to 7.38 percent). Missing the woods for the trees?

11.16 am: "In its bi-monthly monetary policy statement of February 2, 2016, the Reserve Bank indicated that it awaits further data on inflation as well as on structural reforms in the Union Budget that boost growth while controlling spending," the RBI policy statement says. "Given recent data, inflation will trend towards the 5 percent target in March 2017 under reasonable assumptions."

11.13 am: The Reserve Bank's decisions on liquidity heralds a change from a years-long policy where it has intended to keep the system in a marginally liquidity-deficit situation.

11.10 am: "Further monetary policy decisions will be driven by outcome of the monsoon, monetary policy transmission, trajectory of core inflation," says RBI chief Raghuram Rajan while addressing the post-policy press conference.

11.07 am: The RBI says its monetary policy stance will continue to remain accommodative. The stock and bond markets look unchanged even though analysts say the liquidity measures are a huge positive.

11.04 am: The RBI has also raised the reverse repo rate from 5.75 percent to 6 percent. As a result, the difference between the repo and reverse repo rates has come down from 1 percent to 0.5 percent.

The Reserve Bank has the statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) by 25 basis points to 21.25 percent of net demand and time liabilities (NDTL).

The central bank has reduced the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 95 percent of the requirement to 90 percent.

It has also lowered liquidity deficit in the system from 1 percent of net liabilities to near 0 percent.

11.02 am: The central bank has tweaked policies with respect to liquidity. It has reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis point from 7.75 percent to 7 percent.

11.00 am: The RBI has slashed the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.5 percent. The CRR is left unchanged but the central bank has taken several steps to induce liquidity into the system.

10.58 am: Two minutes to go before the decision is announced. The market is down about 0.6 percent.

10.55 am: What will play against chances of a 50 basis point cut coming through is that the RBI would want to see the monsoon play itself out as a third deficient monsoon in a row could play havoc with prices.

What's in favour? The government's fiscally-sound Budget as well as its recent decision to partially de-regulate small savings interest rate.

10.51 am: Some analysts believe that the market has factored in a 25 basis point cut so widely that it could even be a disappointment.

10.48 am: The question the market and economists are grappling with is not whether the RBI will cut rates or not. It is whether the rate cut will be 25 basis points (0.25 percent) or 50 basis points.

10.45 am: Welcome the rolling coverage of the monetary policy review of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) where it is widely expected to slash interest rates for the fourth time starting 2015.

The policy decision will be announced at 11 am.