The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to keep policy rates unchanged in its first bi-monthly monetary policy review of financial year 2018-19 on Wednesday and Thursday.
The six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), headed by RBI Governor Urjit Patel, is scheduled for a two-day meet today and tomorrow.
RBI's monetary policy announcement on Thursday will be the first after the Union Budget 2018-19.
The RBI is under constant pressure to reduce the interest rates in the wake of declining retail inflation and the need to reenergise growth momentum.
The RBI has to take into consideration the rise in crude oil prices also which temporarily touched $70 per barrel this week.
Industry body FICCI has pitched for a benign stance in the monetary policy for strengthening the revival signs in the economy.
The BSE Sensex rose nearly 100 points in opening trade ahead of RBI's monetary policy review on Wednesday.
Rising for the third straight session, the 30-share index gathered another 98.15 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 33,468.78. The gauge had rallied by 401.95 points in previous two sessions.
Similarly, the NSE Nifty gained another 29.60 points, or 0.28 per cent, to trade at 10,274.60.
Brokers said sentiments remained firm largely on the back of sustained buying by domestic institutional investors (DIIs) as well as retail investors and positive cues from other Asian cues, tracking gains on the Wall Street.
Investors, however, are in a wait-and-watch mode ahead of the RBI's first bi-monthly policy meet for FY19, they added.
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