The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reported a 17% increase in its FY24 income to ₹2,75,572.32 crore. Expenditure shrank by 56.3% to ₹64,694.33 crore, from ₹1,48,037.04 crore in FY23, the RBI said in its annual report released on Thursday.
The sharp contraction in spending helped the central bank end the year with a transferrable surplus of ₹2,10,873.99 crore, as against ₹87,416.22 crore in the previous year, which was fully paid to the government.
The size of the RBI’s balance sheet increased by ₹7,02,946.97 crore, or 11%, to ₹70,47,703.21 crore, from ₹63,44,756.24 crore in FY23, the central bank said in its Annual Report.
“The increase on asset side was due to rise in foreign investments, gold, and loans and advances by 13.9%, 18.26% and 30.05%, respectively,” the RBI said. On the liabilities side, the expansion was due to increase in notes issued, deposits and other liabilities by 3.88%, 27% and 92.57%, respectively, it added.
“Domestic assets constituted 23.31% while foreign currency assets, gold (including gold deposit and gold held in India) and loans and advances to financial institutions outside India constituted 76.69% of total assets in FY24 as against 26.08% and 73.92%, respectively in FY23,” the RBI noted.
A provision of ₹42,819.91 crore was made and transferred to the Contingency Fund (CF). No provision was made towards Asset Development Fund (ADF), the RBI said.
The RBI also reiterated its outlook for economic growth, projecting real GDP growth for 2024-25 at 7%, with risks evenly balanced. “The outlook for the Indian economy remains bright, underpinned by a sustained strengthening of macroeconomic fundamentals, robust financial and corporate sectors and a resilient external sector,” it said.
“The government’s continued thrust on capex while pursuing fiscal consolidation, and consumer and business optimism augur well for investment and consumption demand.” it added.
Stating that the Indian economy was navigating the drag from an adverse global macroeconomic and financial environment, the RBI said as headline inflation would ease towards the target, consumption demand, especially in rural areas, would revive.
“The external sector’s strength and buffers in the form of foreign exchange reserves will insulate domestic economic activity from global spillovers,” it asserted.
“Geopolitical tensions, geoeconomic fragmentation, global financial market volatility, international commodity price movements and erratic weather developments pose downside risks to the growth outlook and upside risks to the inflation outlook,” the central bank added.
“The Indian economy would also have to navigate the medium-term challenges posed by rapid adoption of AI/ML technologies and recurrent climate shocks. Even so, it is well placed to step-up its growth trajectory over the next decade in an environment of macroeconomic and financial stability so as to achieve its developmental aspirations,” it further said.
