Economy

India leaves key interest rate unchanged at 8%

Adeel Halim | Bloomberg | Getty Images

India's central bank on Tuesday left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 8 percent in a widely anticipated move.

If inflation continues on its intended path, further policy tightening is not anticipated in the near term, the Reserve Bank of India said in a statement.

The country's consumer price inflation eased to 8.10 percent in February from a year earlier, near the 8 percent target the RBI has for January 2015.

Since taking office in September, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has raised the repo rate three times by a total of 75 basis points.

India's benchmark index declined 0.2 percent following the decision. Earlier in the session, the index hit a fresh record high of 22,485 points.