NEW DELHI -- The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday raised its benchmark repo rate a modest 25 basis points, or a quarter of a percentage point, to 6.5% in what many expect will be its final increase before hitting the pause button as inflation starts to cool.
The latest hike, the sixth in a row, follows a decline in India's December retail inflation rate to a 12-month low of 5.72% from 5.88% in November. Prior to this, inflation had remained above the RBI's maximum tolerance level of 6% for 10 straight months until October.
