Inflation likely to touch 13-14 pc by Oct: ABN Amro Chief

MUMBAI: Inflation is likely to touch the 13-14 per cent mark by October before beginning to soften, a top banker said.

"Inflation is likely to touch the 13-14 per cent mark by October, but it may soften after that," ABN Amro Bank's India chief, Meera Sanyal, told reporters here on Tuesday.

She said that despite a slowing down in crude oil prices, inflation in the country was likely to touch the 13-14 per cent mark by October.

"But Inflation should come down post-October," the ABN Amro official said.

Given the good monsoon expectations, there are already signs of food prices coming down, she said.

On corporate growth, Sanyal said that in the medium-term, there may be some slowdown, "but in the longer-term, it will remain robust."

There has been a slight increase in delinquencies in the credit card and personal loan portfolios of banks, she said, attributing this to the prevailing high interest rates.

On ABN Amro Bank's rebranding into RBS, Sanyal said that the bank was in constant discussions with the Reserve Bank on the matter.

"We are in constant touch with the RBI (on the rebranding issue)," she said.

The entire process may take up to the middle of next year, she said.