Home, vehicle loans to become cheaper as RBI cuts repo rate

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut interest rates by more than expected 50 basis points on Friday, a third consecutive reduction, and unexpectedly reduced the cash reserve ratio for banks to provide a major liquidity fillip to support the economy amid geopolitical and tariff headwinds.

- AGENCY

The RBI's six-member monetary policy committee, headed by Governor Sanjay Malhotra and consisting of three external members, voted five to one to lower the benchmark repurchase or repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.5 per cent. It also cut the cash reserve ratio by 100 basis points to 3 per cent, adding Rs 2.5 lakh crore to already surplus liquidity in the banking system.