The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday announced that it would keep the policy repo rate unchanged, at 5.25%, for the third time in a row, against the backdrop of energy crises and supply disruptions triggered by the ongoing West Asia Conflict. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra, while announcing the repo rate, also said that the economic growth continues to be supported by resilient demand. (Reuters)Announcing the key decision, RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra said the Monetary Policy Committee unanimously decided to retain the policy interest rate and with a neutral stance.The interest rate pause comes even as the Consumer Price Index (CPI)- based headline retail inflation crossed the RBI's medium-term target of 4 per cent, reaching 4.38 per cent in June.However, the RBI raised the gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.7 per cent from the earlier projection of 6.6 per cent for FY27. It also lowered the CPI inflation projection to 5 per cent from the earlier estimate of 5.1 per cent.Disruptions due to West AsiaGovernor Sanjay Malhotra noted that the West Asia conflict has challenged the global economy, with disruption to key trade routes. However, he said that economic growth continues to be supported by resilient demand.He also mentioned the challenges to growth and said, "Renewed tensions in West Asia, volatility in global markets and El-Nino pose downside risks to growth."But, he said that India continues to be the world's fastest-growing large economy.Further, the RBI governor stated that the rise in inflation exacerbated by food and fuel prices is not broad-based. The governor noted that headline inflation is expected to rise in near term, fuelled by higher oil and food prices. He said that it will peak in the third quarter of the financial year before starting to decline.Regarding India's economy, Governor Malhotra said the domestic economy has exhibited resilience amid persistent global uncertainty. He stated that the Indian economy has performed better than expected in the April-June quarter of this fiscal.This is a breaking story. We will update with further information.