Rupee’s Drop in ‘So Short a Time’ Is a Concern, Reserve Bank’s Gokarn Says By Shamim Adam - Sep 25, 2011

The decline in the Indian rupee in “so short a time” as a result of volatility in global markets is a concern, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn said.

Sharp movements in the currency can be disruptive and tend to trigger panic, he said in a speech in Washington yesterday. India has not intervened with an exchange-rate target in mind for a long time and there are no plans to change the policy, he said.

“It is a matter of some concern that we depreciate so much in so short a time but we have to put that into perspective,” Gokarn said. “This is a global phenomenon. There is nothing specific in the country that is driving this process.”

Asian currencies had their biggest weekly drop since 1998 last week as concern the global economy is headed for a recession dimmed the outlook for exports and prompted investors to favor safer bets than emerging-market assets. India’s rupee ended its worst week in 18 years, losing 4.6 percent.

The currency closed at 49.43 per dollar in Mumbai on Sept. 23. This month, the rupee has fallen 6.8 percent even as the Group of 20 Nations sought to quell the turmoil in financial markets.

“We do see that very sharp movements intra-hour or intra- day can be disruptive,” Gokarn said. “They tend to trigger panic, entry or exit. In that situation, we feel that there is some merit in smoothing, infusing dollars to ensure that movement is moderated. That is something we would consider.”
‘High’ Inflation

Inflation in India “remains high” and will probably remain in a range of 9 percent to 10 percent until November, Gokarn said.

The Reserve Bank boosted India’s repurchase rate for the sixth time this year on Sept. 16, raising benchmark borrowing costs 25 basis points to 8.25 percent as policy makers seek to tame the fastest inflation among the biggest emerging markets. Indian wholesale prices rose 9.78 percent from a year earlier in August.

Economic indicators are signaling a slowdown in growth, Gokarn said. India’s $1.7 trillion economy expanded 7.7 percent in the three months ended June 30 from a year earlier, the slowest pace of growth since the last quarter of 2009.

“All of the momentum indicators are showing signs of moderation,” the deputy governor said. “Tax collections are starting to ease off. When we track growth, it’s clearly come down to below 8 percent.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Shamim Adam in Washington at sadam2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chris Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net
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