Mumbai: Inflation is expected to come down to 6.5 to 7.5 percent by the end of the current fiscal, a key Finance Ministry official said Thursday.
"I see inflation in the 6.5 to 7.5 percent range by end FY12. Till November or December it will continue to be in the prevailing range of 9-10 percent," Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry Kaushik Basu said on the sideline of Dr D R Gadgil Memorial Lecture organised by the Maharashtra Economic Development Council here.
"January and February you can have some pressure on food prices but overall it will come down," he said.
Earlier this week, the central bank, in its quarterly review of the monetary policy, has also revised its fiscal-end inflation projection to 7 percent from 6 percent.
In its bid to tame inflation hovering over 9 percent, the RBI hiked short-term lending and borrowing rates sharply by 50 basis points for the third time in three months.
With Thursday's increase of 0.50 percent, the short-term lending (repo) rate has been hiked to 8 percent and the short-term borrowing (reverse repo) rate has also been increased by a similar margin to 7 percent.
He also said, "The three Budget targets of having fiscal deficit at 4.6 percent (of GDP), revenue deficit of 3.1 percent and government borrowing at Rs 3.4 lakh crore is something we have not given upon....we want to hold on to (them)".
"I see inflation in the 6.5 to 7.5 percent range by end FY12. Till November or December it will continue to be in the prevailing range of 9-10 percent," Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry Kaushik Basu said on the sideline of Dr D R Gadgil Memorial Lecture organised by the Maharashtra Economic Development Council here.
"January and February you can have some pressure on food prices but overall it will come down," he said.
Earlier this week, the central bank, in its quarterly review of the monetary policy, has also revised its fiscal-end inflation projection to 7 percent from 6 percent.
In its bid to tame inflation hovering over 9 percent, the RBI hiked short-term lending and borrowing rates sharply by 50 basis points for the third time in three months.
With Thursday's increase of 0.50 percent, the short-term lending (repo) rate has been hiked to 8 percent and the short-term borrowing (reverse repo) rate has also been increased by a similar margin to 7 percent.
He also said, "The three Budget targets of having fiscal deficit at 4.6 percent (of GDP), revenue deficit of 3.1 percent and government borrowing at Rs 3.4 lakh crore is something we have not given upon....we want to hold on to (them)".
PTI
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