Pre-Budget Expectations Quote | Virat Diwanji, Group President and Head – Consumer Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank

New Delhi, January 27, 2023.

Union Budget FY2024 faces twin challenges of sustaining the growth momentum and fiscal consolidation amid deepening global headwinds.

We expect that the Government would continue to focus on strengthening capital expenditure and other measures, improving the purchasing power of the middle-class and boosting consumption levels across urban and rural India. Even though the general borrowing trends have returned to above pre-Covid levels, it needs an extended push.

The retail inflation – which registered a marginal decline in December 2022 – remains a concern as it is only slightly lower than the RBI’s upper band of 6%. While the economic outlook is bright, we anticipate the Government to peg the FY24 GDP at 5.8%, 50-60 bps lower than FY23 target.”