PM Modi says committed to meeting budget deficit goal

New Delhi, Jan 17 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that he is committed to meeting this year's budget deficit target, welcoming a cut in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on the back of falling inflation. In a speech, Modi said his government would cut wasteful spending, streamline the payment of welfare benefits and raise investment in roads and railways to boost economic growth in Asia's third-largest economy. Modi's comments signalled his assent to RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan's call for "sustained high quality fiscal consolidation" as a condition for further monetary easing after a surprise quarter-point cut on Thursday. The 64-year-old prime minister said it would be difficult to revive economic growth but promised to deliver incremental reforms. Jan 17, 2015
market-expert-welcomes-slash-in-repo-rate-by-25-basis-points-to-7-75-percent

Market Expert welcomes slash in repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.75 percent

Mumbai, Jan 15 (ANI): The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) surprised markets with a 25 basis point cut in interest rates on Thursday and signalled it could do more, amid signs of slowing inflation and what it said was a government commitment to contain the fiscal deficit. Stock Market Expert Sunil Saha termed it as a pleasant surprise and added that long term outlook for inflation looks quite rosy. Jan 15, 2015
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Finance Minister Jaitley holds pre-budget meet with IT sector representatives

New Delhi, Jan 15 (ANI): Finance Minister Arun Jaitley met representatives of Information Technology (hardware and software) sector ahead of the budget to discuss issues faced by the industry. Jaitley is due to present the BJP-led government's 2015/16 budget and its fiscal deficit target to parliament at the end of February. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Infosys, Vishal Sikka praised Jaitley for making an effort to meet everyone for pre-budget consultations. The budget statement will be preceded by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) policy meeting on February 03, with some speculation that the central bank could lower its key interest rate, which has stayed unchanged at 8 percent since January 2014. Jan 15, 2015