For a few dollars more.

"In unanimous decision, the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) yesterday kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% for the third consecutive time." "The RBI projected GDP growth for FY27 at 6.6%, down from the earlier 6.9%." Consumer price (CPI) inflation is expected to be 5.1%, 50 basis points (bps) higher than earlier estimates and core inflation is expected at 4.7%. DH. "India's economic growth accelerated to 7.7% in 2025-26 from 7.1% a year earlier," while  "The economy expanded 7.8% in the January-March quarter of FY26, compared with 8% in the previous quarter." "For the full year, inflation-adjusted (real) GDP rose to Rs 323.12 trillion," while, "In nominal terms, which include the impact of inflation, GDP is estimated to have expanded 8.9% to 346.36 trillion." ET. Nominal GDP increases in tandem with CPI inflation and government taxes are based on nominal GDP. CPI inflation came in at 3.48% in April 2026 (pib.gov.in) and "India's gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections moderated to Rs 1.94 trillion in May 2026 from a record Rs 2.42 trillion in April (ET). Compared to the year 2000, the price of petrol has risen nearly 400%, LPG (cooking gas) cylinder by nearly 600% and milk by more than 500%. India Today. Average private school fees in Delhi was Rs 25,000 in 2000, rose to Rs 65,000 in 2008 (TOI and now range from Rs 1,80,000 in budget schools (over 700%) to Rs 1.50 million in premium schools (6000%) (tutopia.com). GDP per capita was $442.75 in 2000 (macrotrends.net) and has risen to $2,813 in 2026 (over 600%) (wikipedia). If GDP per capita is growing at about the same rate as prices then Indians have not become wealthier between 2000 and 2026. The Gini coefficient, in which zero indicates perfect equality while 1 represents maximum inequality, is 0.74 for both India and the US, but "while inequality fell significantly in the US over 2019-2024, in India it actually rose over the same period." The Wire. To bring in more foreign exchange and support the rupee, "India said yesterday it would exempt foreign institutional investors and the Bank for International Settlements from capital gains tax on receipts arising from interest or sale of government securities." "Foreign investors are subject to a 12.5% long-term capital gains tax on listed shares and bonds held for more than 12 months, and a 20% withholding tax on interest earned from government bonds." "Bond markets and the rupee were little changed after the announcement, which had been expected." Reuters. Abolishing taxes on gains of foreign investors could result in a fall in revenue and a rise in fiscal deficit and increased government borrowing. That would result in a fall in bond prices and a rise in yields. That may be one reason for bonds and the rupee seeing little change. To reduce the pressure, the RBI announced a "wider access for foreign investors to government bonds, easier investment rules for overseas Indians and foreign residents, and incentives for companies and banks to raise funds from abroad." ET. While the Indian government and the RBI are looking at the Iran conflict and supplies of oil and gas the US could cause a big headache. Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report showed "The US economy added 175K jobs in May, well above expectations of 85K. Meanwhile, April's payroll figures were revised higher to 179K from 115K, while the Unemployment Rate held steady at 4.3%." fxstreet.com. A hike in US interest rate could see a selloff in Indian bonds as investors would find US bonds more attractive. Taking inflation into account, ordinary Indians are not more prosperous in 2026 than they were in 2000, could be slightly worse off. The government and the RBI scrambling to stay afloat. The US could provide the proverbial straw.