Possibility of currency wars risk to India's growth: RBI Governor
Mumbai, Aug 1: The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday said that the possibility of global protectionist measures culminating into currency wars can hamper India's growth prospects.
"We already had a few months of turbulence behind us and it looks like that this is likely to continue for how long I don't know. But the trade skirmishes evolved into tariff wars and now we are possibly at the beginning of currency wars," RBI Governor Urjit Patel said at a press conference after a meeting of its monetary policy committee.
"Given this we have to ensure that we run a tight ship on the risks that we control to maximise the chances of ensuring macroeconomic stability and continuing with the growth profile of 7 to 7.5 per cent going forward. We do have things that are in our favour and if we continue along that path we ensure that we don't add to the global risk profile that would adversely affect us."
Lately, a slew of trade protectionist measures initiated by major economies led by the US has impacted international business sentiment and resulted in retaliatory tariff wars.
On July 7, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said global trade is passing through "challenging times" and the existence of World Trade Organisation (WTO) was under threat.
According to Patel, other risks such as higher crude oil prices and an upward inflation trajectory might also impede India's growth rate which he expects to grow at 7.4 per cent in 2018-19.
Patel's cautionary note came after the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to raise the apex bank's key benchmark lending rate by 25 basis point to 6.5 per cent in the third monetary policy review of 2018-19 on Wednesday.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
