RESERVE Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday said the growth for 2022-23 is expected to be more than the advance estimate of 7 per cent on the back of economic momentum maintained in the third and fourth quarters of the last fiscal. As per the second advance estimate released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) in February, the economy is estimated to grow at 7 per cent in 2022-23 against 8.7 per cent in the preceding fiscal.

 

“There is a possibility that it could be even more...It will not be a surprise if the GDP growth of last year comes slightly above 7 per cent,” he said at a CII event here. Provisional Annual Estimates for the year 2022-23 will be released on May 31, 2023. Das said inflation has moderated, and the next print is expected to be lower than 4.7 per cent though there is no room for complacency and the war on inflation will continue. Retail inflation fell to an 18-month low of 4.7 per cent in April, mainly due to cooling food prices. The Governor, however, emphasised that although inflation has moderated, there is no room for complacency. He stressed that the entire process of withdrawal of Rs 2000 notes will be non-disruptive, and the Central Bank has been monitoring the situation regularly.