Shaktikanta Das: Sailing through turbulence - India's tryst with financial stability

Keynote address by Mr Shaktikanta Das, Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, at the CNBC TV18 Global Leadership Summit to mark the 25th anniversary of CNBC TV18, Mumbai, 14 November 2024.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

I am happy to be here at the Global Leadership Summit which marks the 25th anniversary of CNBC TV18. I would like to congratulate Team CNBC TV18 for its successful journey over the years. It is indeed an honour for me to join this occasion to felicitate three distinguished former Governors of the Reserve Bank of India – Dr. C. Rangarajan, Dr. Bimal Jalan and Dr. Y.V Reddy. With their exceptional performance in economic and financial sector policy making, they occupy the pole position in the art and science of central banking. As stewards of a full-service central bank, they initiated fundamental shifts in monetary frameworks as well as in the financial, exchange rate and external sector policies of the country. I humbly bow to the rich tradition and legacies left behind by Dr Rangarajan, Dr Jalan and Dr Reddy in shaping what the Reserve Bank of India is today. Drawing inspiration from their contributions, I have chosen to speak today on the topic, 'Sailing through Turbulence: India's Tryst with Financial Stability'.

In recent years, the global economy has gone through a period of continual and unprecedented shocks. This was a period of "Great Volatility" as distinct from the earlier era of "Great Moderation". Complex and varied shocks of a global pandemic, supply chain disruptions, wars, geopolitical conflicts and climate change hit the global economy very hard. These were not typical shocks dealt with in textbooks or having standard policy responses. Sailing through this turbulent period has, therefore, been a daunting challenge for every country including India.

Current Global Context

After almost a synchronous adoption of expansionary policies following the pandemic, central banks across the world resorted to an equally synchronous monetary policy tightening when high inflation bounced back in the face of supply chain disruptions and the war in Ukraine. Overall, these policies across the globe appear to have worked well. Soft landing has been ensured, but risks of inflation coming back and growth slowing down do remain. The headwinds from geopolitical conflicts, geo-economic fragmentation, commodity price volatility and climate change continue to blow.