Reserve Bank of India Reports Decline in Lending Rates

The Reserve Bank of India reported a decline in the weighted average lending rate on fresh rupee loans from scheduled commercial banks, which fell to 8.51 percent in September 2026 from 8.61 percent in August. While new loan rates dropped, the weighted average rate on outstanding rupee loans remained steady at 8.96 percent during the same period.

Deposit rates also trended downward. Fresh rupee term deposits decreased to 5.61 percent from 5.67 percent, while outstanding term deposits saw a slight reduction to 6.55 percent from 6.56 percent. The central bank noted that these movements were not uniform across different sectors.

Further declines continued into the following month, with the median one-year Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate falling to 8.55 percent in October 2026 from 8.61 percent in September. The reported data excludes small finance banks and regional rural banks.