RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26 explained through all seven statistical appendix tables.
The RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26 ends with seven Appendix Tables that compress the entire economic and financial story of the year into a highly exam-relevant statistical framework. For RBI Grade B, RBI Promotion Exams, UPSC, banking examinations and interviews, these tables are particularly valuable because they bring together GDP, GVA, inflation, money and credit, financial markets, fiscal indicators, external debt, exchange rates, financial-resource flows and Balance of Payments in one place.
If you have studied the previous parts of this series, the Appendix is where you should now connect the numbers rather than memorise them independently.
The seven tables answer seven different questions:
| Appendix | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Table 1 | Overall macroeconomic and financial performance |
| Table 2 | GDP growth and sectoral/compositional structure |
| Table 3 | Who is saving in the Indian economy? |
| Table 4 | Inflation, money and credit trends |
| Table 5 | Where did financing for the commercial sector come from? |
| Table 6 | Fiscal deficit, debt and government finances |
| Table 7 | India’s Balance of Payments |
Appendix Table 1: Macroeconomic and Financial Indicators
This is arguably the single most important table for revision because it brings together the real economy, prices, money, financial markets, government finances and external sector.
1. Real economy
Real GDP growth increased from 7.1% in 2024-25 to 7.6% in 2025-26. Real GVA growth also improved from 7.3% to 7.7%.
Foodgrain production was 348.7 million tonnes, while food stocks stood at 93.9 million tonnes at year-end. IIP growth was 4.1%, while growth of the Eight Core Industries was 2.7%.
2. Inflation
The combined CPI inflation rate fell dramatically:
- 2023-24: 5.4%
- 2024-25: 4.6%
- 2025-26: 2.1%
CPI-IW inflation was 3.1%, while WPI inflation was only 0.7%.
This is one of the most important statistical contrasts of FY2025-26:
GDP growth accelerated while headline CPI inflation fell sharply.
That combination created substantially greater monetary-policy room during the year.
3. Money and credit
The Appendix records:
- Reserve Money growth: 6.0%
- M3 growth: 15.3%
- SCB aggregate deposits: 16.2%
- SCB bank credit: 17.1%
Thus, credit growth remained stronger than in the previous year, while broad money growth accelerated significantly.
4. Financial-market rates
Important 2025-26 indicators included:
| Indicator | 2025-26 |
|---|---|
| Call/Notice Money Rate | 5.4% |
| 10-year G-sec yield | 6.5% |
| 91-day T-bill yield | 5.5% |
| Weighted average yield of Central Government borrowings | 6.7% |
| Commercial Paper | 6.6% |
| Certificates of Deposit | 6.3% |
Average daily G-sec market turnover increased to ₹1.2 lakh crore, while SDF outstanding was ₹5.9 lakh crore at year-end.
Appendix Table 1: Fiscal and External-Sector Snapshot
The central government’s GFD declined from 4.8% of GDP in 2024-25 to 4.4% in 2025-26 RE, with the 2026-27 BE at 4.3%.
For states, the consolidated GFD was 3.5% in 2025-26 RE and budgeted at 3.3% in the Appendix’s state series for 2026-27.
The external sector presents a more mixed picture.
Key 2025-26 indicators
- Merchandise export growth: 2.4%
- Merchandise import growth: 5.7%
- Trade balance/GDP: –8.7%
- Invisible balance/GDP: 7.7%
- Current Account Balance/GDP: –1.1%
- Net capital flows/GDP: 0.0%
- External debt: US$765.5 billion
- External debt/GDP: 20.4%
- Import cover: 10.8 months
- Short-term debt/total debt: 19.7%
- Debt-service ratio: 5.8%
- Reserves/external debt: 89.8%
Exchange-rate indicators
The end-period rupee-dollar exchange rate in the Appendix was ₹94.7 per US dollar, compared with ₹85.6 in 2024-25.
The 40-currency indices showed:
- 40-currency REER: –7.5%
- 40-currency NEER: –6.9%
The average exchange rate for 2025-26 was ₹88.3 per US dollar.
Appendix Table 2: GDP Growth and Composition
Appendix Table 2 is crucial for understanding where India’s 7.6% GDP growth came from.
At 2022-23 prices, real GDP growth was:
- 2023-24: 7.2%
- 2024-25: 7.1%
- 2025-26: 7.6%
The expenditure-side composition is particularly important.
Major components
| Component | Growth 2025-26 | Share of GDP |
|---|---|---|
| PFCE | 7.7% | 55.7% |
| GFCE | 6.6% | 10.2% |
| GFCF | 7.1% | 32.0% |
| Exports | 6.5% | 22.2% |
| Imports | 6.4% | 23.9% |
| GDP | 7.6% | 100% |
The most important takeaway is that private consumption remained the largest expenditure component, accounting for 55.7% of GDP.
Investment, represented by GFCF, grew 7.1% and accounted for 32.0% of GDP.
Supply-side story
The GVA side shows an equally important structural picture:
| Sector | Growth 2025-26 | Share of GVA |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, livestock, forestry & fishing | 2.4% | 17.7% |
| Industry | 9.5% | 20.6% |
| Manufacturing | 11.5% | 16.2% |
| Services | 8.7% | 61.7% |
| GVA | 7.7% | 100% |
Manufacturing’s 11.5% growth stands out, while services remained the largest contributor to GVA at 61.7%.
Exam Point
Highest growth among major GVA sectors in 2025-26 = Manufacturing, 11.5%.
Largest GVA share = Services, 61.7%.
Do not confuse growth rate with share.
Appendix Table 3: Gross Savings
Table 3 answers a deceptively simple question:
Who generates India’s savings?
Gross savings increased from 29.3% of GNDI in 2022-23 to 34.2% in 2024-25.
Sector-wise savings
| Sector | 2024-25 (% of GNDI) |
|---|---|
| Non-financial corporations | 9.9% |
| Financial corporations | 3.4% |
| General government | –0.3% |
| Household sector | 21.3% |
| Gross savings | 34.2% |
The household sector remained the largest saving sector.
Within household savings:
- Net financial saving: 7.0%
- Gross financial saving: 11.8%
- Saving in physical assets: 13.6%
- Saving in valuables: 0.7%
Why this matters
A common exam mistake is to equate household saving only with financial saving.
The table makes the distinction explicit:
Household gross saving = net financial saving + financial liabilities adjustment + physical assets + valuables, conceptually; the Appendix separately reports the components.
For examination purposes, remember the striking increase in net household financial saving from 5.2% in 2022-23 to 7.0% in 2024-25.
Appendix Table 4: Inflation, Money and Credit
This table is one of the highest-yield sections for RBI examinations.
Inflation
Combined CPI inflation:
5.4% → 4.6% → 2.1%
for 2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26 respectively.
For 2025-26:
- Rural CPI inflation: 1.8%
- Urban CPI inflation: 2.4%
- Combined CPI: 2.1%
WPI inflation was 0.7%. CPI-IW inflation was 3.1%.
Money indicators
The 2025-26 figures are especially important:
| Indicator | 2025-26 |
|---|---|
| Reserve Money | 6.0% |
| Currency in Circulation | 11.9% |
| Bankers’ deposits with RBI | –18.4% |
| Currency-GDP ratio | 12.1% |
| M1 | 22.3% |
| M3 | 15.3% |
| Currency-deposit ratio | 14.9% |
| Money multiplier | 6.1 |
The fall in bankers’ deposits with RBI is particularly notable and is connected with the reduction in the CRR during the year.
Banking indicators
Scheduled commercial bank:
- Aggregate deposits: 16.2%
- Bank credit: 17.1%
- Non-food credit: 16.9%
- Credit-deposit ratio: 81.4%
- Credit-GDP ratio: 61.8%
The big relationship
Credit growth (17.1%) > deposit growth (16.2%)
This helps explain why banks had to increasingly use alternative funding sources, including certificates of deposit and other market-based resources.
Appendix Table 5: Flow of Financial Resources to the Commercial Sector
This is a very useful table for descriptive answers because it moves beyond bank credit.
Total flow of financial resources to the commercial sector rose to:
₹47,04,376 crore in 2025-26
from ₹36,23,453 crore in 2024-25.
Major sources
| Source | 2025-26 flow (₹ crore) |
|---|---|
| Non-food bank credit | 29,19,166 |
| Flow from non-banks | 17,85,210 |
| Domestic non-bank sources | 12,66,319 |
| Foreign sources | 5,18,891 |
| Corporate bond issuances | 3,22,114 |
| Equity issuances | 3,62,328 |
| FDI to India | 3,60,337 |
| NBFC credit | 4,43,092 |
The data show why India’s financial system cannot be analysed only through bank lending.
Outstanding credit
Outstanding non-food bank credit was ₹2,12,91,163 crore, growing 15.9%.
Outstanding non-bank credit was ₹1,01,09,295 crore, growing 13.3%.
Total outstanding credit reached ₹3,14,00,458 crore, growing 15.0%.
Exam Point
When asked about financial intermediation in India, discuss:
Banks + NBFCs + corporate bonds + equity + AIFIs + FDI + external borrowing.
That is far superior to treating bank credit as the entire financing system.
Appendix Table 6: Key Fiscal Indicators
This table provides the long-run fiscal story.
The central government’s GFD reached its pandemic peak of 9.2% of GDP in 2020-21.
It subsequently declined:
- 2020-21: 9.2%
- 2021-22: 6.7%
- 2022-23: 6.5%
- 2023-24: 5.5%
- 2024-25: 4.8%
- 2025-26 RE: 4.4%
- 2026-27 BE: 4.3%
This is a clean example of post-pandemic fiscal consolidation.
Central government debt
Outstanding liabilities, including the measure based on current exchange rates, stood at:
- 56.1% of GDP in 2025-26 RE
- 55.6% in 2026-27 BE
States
State GFD was:
- 2020-21: 4.1%
- 2023-24: 2.9%
- 2024-25: 3.0%
- 2025-26 RE: 3.5%
- 2026-27 BE: 3.0%
The state figures in the table are expressed as a percentage of GSDP, unlike the central government’s ratios, which are expressed as a percentage of GDP.
Important caution
The table contains different estimation stages:
- RE = Revised Estimates
- BE = Budget Estimates
Do not present a BE as an actual outturn.
Appendix Table 7: India’s Overall Balance of Payments
This is the final statistical table and one of the most important for RBI/UPSC examinations.
For 2025-26, the data are provisional and cover April–December 2025, not the full financial year.
Current Account
| Indicator | 2025-26 Apr-Dec (US$ million) |
|---|---|
| Exports, f.o.b. | 333,369 |
| Imports, c.i.f. | 584,992 |
| Trade balance | –251,623 |
| Invisibles, net | 221,385 |
| Net services | 156,273 |
| Software services | 132,419 |
| Net income | –37,170 |
| Private transfers | 103,212 |
| Current Account Balance | –30,238 |
The key point is that the large merchandise trade deficit was partly offset by invisibles, particularly services and private transfers.
The resulting current account deficit was US$30.238 billion, equivalent to 1.1% of GDP.
Capital Account: What Financed the External Gap?
Foreign investment was –US$1.276 billion during April–December 2025.
Within it:
- Direct investment: US$3.040 billion
- Portfolio investment: –US$4.316 billion
Other capital flows included:
- Commercial borrowings: US$6.700 billion
- Short-term credit: US$15.318 billion
- Banking capital: US$1.028 billion
- NRI deposits: US$11.122 billion
Total capital account flow was only US$72 million.
Consequently, the overall balance was –US$30.818 billion, reflected in monetary movements through a reduction in reserves/monetary gold on the BoP basis.
Exam Point
Do not confuse:
Current Account Deficit ≠ Trade Deficit
India can have a large merchandise trade deficit but a much smaller CAD because net services and transfers offset part of the trade deficit.
The Seven Tables as One Economic Story
The real value of the Appendix appears when the tables are read together.
The chain is:
Strong GDP growth
↓
GDP grew 7.6%
Broad-based domestic demand
↓
PFCE grew 7.7%, GFCF 7.1%
Strong supply-side performance
↓
Industry 9.5%, manufacturing 11.5%, services 8.7%
Low inflation
↓
CPI 2.1%
Monetary and credit expansion
↓
M3 15.3%, bank credit 17.1%
Higher financing requirement
↓
Total financial resources ₹47.04 lakh crore
Fiscal consolidation
↓
Central GFD 4.4% of GDP
External imbalance remains manageable
↓
CAD 1.1% of GDP, external debt/GDP 20.4%
This is the statistical skeleton of the RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26.
Most Important Numbers to Memorise
If you have only a few minutes before the examination, memorise these:
| Area | Number |
|---|---|
| Real GDP growth | 7.6% |
| Real GVA growth | 7.7% |
| Manufacturing growth | 11.5% |
| Services growth | 8.7% |
| CPI inflation | 2.1% |
| WPI inflation | 0.7% |
| M3 growth | 15.3% |
| Bank credit growth | 17.1% |
| Credit-deposit ratio | 81.4% |
| Money multiplier | 6.1 |
| Central GFD | 4.4% of GDP |
| Central debt/liabilities | 56.1% of GDP |
| External debt | US$765.5 bn |
| External debt/GDP | 20.4% |
| CAD | 1.1% of GDP |
| Total financial resources | ₹47.04 lakh crore |
| Foodgrain production | 348.7 MT |
| 10-year G-sec yield | 6.5% |
| End-period ₹/US$ | 94.7 |
These figures are directly drawn from the Appendix Tables; remember that some 2025-26 external-sector numbers are provisional and April–December based.
High-Probability Exam Questions
Objective questions
- What was India’s real GDP growth in 2025-26?
- What was CPI inflation in 2025-26?
- What was the growth rate of manufacturing GVA?
- What was the money multiplier in 2025-26?
- What was the credit-deposit ratio of SCBs?
- What was India’s external debt-to-GDP ratio?
- What was India’s CAD as a percentage of GDP?
- Which sector had the largest share of GVA?
- What was the central government’s GFD in 2025-26 RE?
- What was the total flow of financial resources to the commercial sector?
Descriptive questions
“India recorded strong economic growth alongside low inflation in 2025-26. Examine the macroeconomic evidence.”
“Analyse the changing composition of financial resources available to the Indian commercial sector.”
“Discuss India’s external-sector resilience using the Balance of Payments and external-debt indicators.”
“Explain the trajectory of fiscal consolidation in India using the RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26.”
Important Data Caveats for the Examination
This is where serious candidates distinguish themselves from candidates who merely memorise numbers.
1. GDP series
The Appendix notes that data from 2023-24 onward use the 2022-23 base-year series, whereas earlier data use the 2011-12 base-year series.
2. CPI
The 2025-26 CPI figure combines monthly inflation rates using the old 2012=100 series through December 2025 and the revised 2024=100 series from January 2026.
3. Reserve Money
The 2025-26 reserve-money figure relates to March 30, 2026, while money-supply figures relate to March 31, 2026.
4. External sector
Appendix Table 7’s 2025-26 figures are provisional and only cover April–December 2025.
5. Fiscal indicators
For states, the 2025-26 and 2026-27 figures are based on the available state budget information and are expressed relative to GSDP.
These caveats are not decorative footnotes. They can determine whether an answer is technically correct.
Key Takeaways
- Real GDP growth was 7.6% in 2025-26.
- Real GVA growth was 7.7%.
- Manufacturing was the fastest-growing major GVA component at 11.5%.
- Services remained dominant with 61.7% of GVA.
- CPI inflation fell to 2.1%, while WPI inflation was 0.7%.
- M3 growth accelerated to 15.3%.
- SCB bank credit grew 17.1%, exceeding deposit growth of 16.2%.
- The money multiplier increased to 6.1.
- Central GFD declined to 4.4% of GDP in 2025-26 RE.
- External debt stood at US$765.5 billion, or 20.4% of GDP.
- CAD was 1.1% of GDP for April–December 2025.
- Total financial resources to the commercial sector increased to ₹47.04 lakh crore.
- Household sector remained the largest source of gross savings.
- The Appendix is a compact statistical summary of the entire Annual Report and should be used for last-minute revision and data-based descriptive answers.
RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26: One-Minute Revision
Growth: 7.6% GDP | 7.7% GVA | 11.5% manufacturing | 8.7% services
Inflation: CPI 2.1% | WPI 0.7%
Money: RM 6.0% | M3 15.3% | Money multiplier 6.1
Banking: Deposits 16.2% | Credit 17.1% | CD ratio 81.4%
Fiscal: Central GFD 4.4% | Central liabilities 56.1%
External: Debt US$765.5 bn | Debt/GDP 20.4% | CAD 1.1%
Finance: Commercial-sector financial-resource flow ₹47.04 lakh crore
Exchange rate: End-March ₹94.7/US$
Savings: Gross savings 34.2% of GNDI; household savings 21.3%
Remember: Table 7’s FY2025-26 BoP data = April–December 2025, provisional.
Final Exam Strategy
Do not attempt to memorise all seven tables line by line.
Instead, build a mental framework:
Table 1 = Macro Dashboard
Table 2 = GDP Engine
Table 3 = Savings Structure
Table 4 = Inflation + Money + Credit
Table 5 = Financing Structure
Table 6 = Fiscal Health
Table 7 = External Balance
If you can reproduce that structure and attach the major numbers to each table, you have converted the statistical appendix from a collection of data into an exam-ready analytical framework.
Series Completion Note
With this article, the 30-part RBI Annual Report FY 2025-26 article architecture reaches its final statistical component. The Appendix Tables should now be used alongside the preceding thematic articles for integrated revision rather than studied separately.
The next logical step is therefore not another thematic chapter, but a consolidated master revision and completeness audit covering the most important statistics, definitions, policy measures, institutions, dates and probable examination areas from the entire Annual Report.