At Rs 70.48 lakh crore, RBI's balance sheet is more than Pakistan, Bangladesh's GDPs put together

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reported an 11.08% increase in its balance sheet, reaching ₹70.48 lakh crore as of March 31, 2024. 

This data, disclosed in the central bank's annual report released on Thursday, underscores a significant expansion in the RBI's financial position.

To put this in perspective, the RBI's balance sheet size, equivalent to $844.76 billion, surpasses the entire GDPs of Pakistan and Bangladesh. 

According to World Bank data, Pakistan's GDP stands at $375 billion, while Bangladesh's GDP is valued at $460 billion.

India story intact

The RBI in its report sees India's GDP growth staying robust on the back of solid investment demand which is supported by healthy balance sheets of banks and corporates, the government's focus on capital expenditure and prudent monetary, regulatory and fiscal policies.

The Reserve Bank's Annual Report for 2023-24 said that the Indian economy is navigating the drag from an adverse global macroeconomic and financial environment. Indian economy, the report said, is well-placed to step up growth trajectory over the next decade in an environment of macroeconomic and financial stability.

"As headline inflation eases towards the target, it will spur consumption demand especially in rural areas," it said.

It further said the external sector's strength and buffers in the form of foreign exchange reserves will insulate domestic economic activity from global spillovers.
 
The report, however, added that 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 RBI also emphasised that the Indian economy would have to navigate challenges posed by rapid adoption of AI/ML (artificial intelligence/machine learning) technologies as well as recurrent climate shocks. Indian economy is likely to grow at 7 per cent in the current fiscal year starting April, the RBI said.
 

The Indian economy, it said, expanded at a robust pace in 2023-24 (April 2023 to March 2024 financial year), with real GDP growth accelerating to 7.6 per cent from 7.0 per cent in the previous year

"The real GDP growth for 2024-25 is projected at 7.0 per cent with risks evenly balanced," it said.

The economy, it said, showed resilience in FY24 despite persistent headwinds.