Mumbai, Tuesday 28 July 2009: The Reserve Bank of India left its short-term rates and banks’ cash reserve requirement unchanged as expected on Tuesday and stressed that its priority is to nurture growth, which has been hurt by the global downturn.

“It is worth reiterating that the Reserve Bank will maintain an accommodative monetary stance until there are definite and robust signs of recovery,” it said in its review.

RBI left its lending rate steady at 4.75 percent, its lowest in nine years, and its reverse repo rate, at which it absorbs surplus cash from the banking system, unchanged at 3.25 percent.

Both rates, introduced in 2000, were last cut by 25 basis points in its April review.

The RBI also kept the cash reserve ratio, the amount of funds banks have to keep on deposit with it, unchanged at 5.00 percent.

It was last cut by 50 basis points in January.

The bank rate, used by banks to price long-term loans, remained at 6.0 percent.