Govt to announce measures to boost market, Finance Minister

Kolkata, June 23 (PTI) Government will soon announce measures to improve market conditions, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee disclosed here today. "The steps we have taken...And we will be able to take certain measures to be announced on Monday which will improve market condition," Mukherjee, who will resign as Finance Minister on June 26 (rpt) June 26, told reporters. Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs R Gopalan had yesterday consulted RBI Governor D Subbarao, who is aboard, about the measures underway,the Finance Minister said. Mukherjee expressed concern over sharp depreciation in rupee and inflationary pressures. "I would like to say GDP (growth) is at 6.5 per cent. There is inflationary pressure on economy, there is depreciation of Rupee. These are, no doubt, signs of weakness in Indian economy ...I am concerned but I am not depressed". He said when the global economy is in turmoil,"then no country can expect that there will be pocket of development and particularly a large economy like India which is the third largest in terms of purchasing power parity cannot remain insulated from external factors". Rupee has lost over 20 per cent against the US dollar in the last one year. It has weakened to over Rs 57 to a dollar, exerting inflationary pressure on the economy, particularly with regard to crude oil imports. The stock market has lost ground and industrial growth has slipped to 0.1 per cent in April. However, Mukherjee, who has been named as the UPA Presidential candidate said the Indian economy is resilient with strong fundamentals. He said the period from January to June 6, 2012 saw an inflow of FII money to the tune of USD 8 billion, as against negative flow in 2011. "...FDI stood at USD 46-48 billion which is higher than last fiscal," Mukherjee said. PTI