Most economists see RBI raising rates in October policy

NEW DELHI: Most economists are betting on a rate hike by the monetary policy committee in Oct in the wake of acceleration in inflation, massive liquidity and central banks increasing interest rates in the US and Japan, a poll by TOI has shown.The poll of a dozen economists showed that a majority expects repo rate to rise by 25 basis points (100 basis points equal a percentage point), the first increase since Feb 2023 when RBI had opted for a hike to combat the post-pandemic spike in inflation, before it started gradual easing between Feb and Dec 2025. Although MPC kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25%, economists expect rates to rise by 50-75 bps in this financial year.During the second quarter, average inflation will be around 20 bps higher than RBI's estimate of 4.7%, Kotak Mahindra Bank chief economist Upasana Bhardwaj said.