The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its October 2025 Bulletin, offering deep insights into the state of India’s economy, corporate sector performance, SME fundraising trends, data quality frameworks for central banks, and challenges in the steel industry.
This monthly publication includes the bi-monthly monetary policy statement, five speeches, five research articles, and the latest statistical data. Let’s understand each article in simple language.
1. State of the Economy
The RBI report highlights that global uncertainty has increased, especially in the US, where trade and policy challenges remain. The US-China trade tensions and a prolonged US government shutdown have affected investor confidence.
Despite these global challenges, the Indian economy has shown strong resilience.
Here are the main points:
- Urban and rural demand are both showing positive signs of revival.
- Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation dropped sharply in September 2025, reaching its lowest level since June 2017.
- Overall, India’s domestic economy remains steady even when global demand is weak.
This means people in cities and villages are spending more, inflation is under control, and India’s growth story continues despite international uncertainty.
Also read-SBI Public Notice 2025: Action Required for Inoperative Savings Bank Accounts
2. Resilience and Revival: India’s Private Corporate Sector
This article, written by Snigdha Yogindran, Sukti Khandekar, Rajesh Kavediya, and Kamal Gupta, studies how India’s private companies recovered from the COVID-19 shock and became stronger in the post-pandemic period.
Key Highlights:
- Corporate Sales Growth: After the pandemic, sales grew by 32.5% in 2021–22, recovering from earlier declines, and then stabilized at 7.2% growth in 2024–25.
- Profit Rise: Net profits increased sharply to ₹7.1 trillion in 2024–25, compared to ₹2.5 trillion in 2020–21.
- Improved Profit Margins: Profit margins rose to 10.3% in 2024–25 from 7.2% in 2020–21.
- Lower Debt Levels: Companies reduced their debt, improving their debt-to-equity ratio.
- Better Debt Servicing: Manufacturing firms improved their interest coverage ratio to 7.7, showing they can easily repay loans.
- Firm-Level Performance: Large firms led profitability, while small and medium companies improved faster in handling their debt.
This shows that India’s private sector has not only bounced back from the pandemic but is now more financially stable and better prepared for global economic challenges.
3. Fundraising by Indian SMEs through IPOs: Recent Trends and Developments
Written by Bhagyashree Chattopadhyay and Shromona Ganguly, this article discusses how Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are raising funds through Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) on dedicated SME stock exchanges.
Key Highlights:
- The SME IPO market witnessed a strong surge in FY 2023–24 and FY 2024–25, with active participation from retail investors.
- Most IPOs were oversubscribed, meaning investor demand was much higher than the number of shares available.
- SMEs used the raised funds mainly for expanding their capital base and working capital needs.
- The growth was supported by positive market conditions and policy improvements in payment and settlement systems.
- However, the post-listing performance of these SME stocks has been mixed, offering both opportunities and risks for investors.
In short, India’s small businesses are gaining investor trust and growing faster, but investors should remain cautious about long-term returns.
4. Compliance to Confidence: A Data Quality Model for Central Banks
This article by Debasis Nandi and Sujeesh Kumar focuses on how data quality plays a crucial role in the functioning of central banks like the RBI.
Central banks collect massive amounts of data from banks and financial institutions. Ensuring that this data is accurate, reliable, and consistent is essential for effective decision-making.
Key Highlights:
- The article introduces a Data Quality Index (DQI) with eight dimensions of data quality.
- It builds upon four traditional data quality measures and extends them to cover data collection and sharing processes.
- The DQI helps central banks monitor and improve data accuracy, thereby increasing regulatory efficiency and public trust.
- Automation in data collection and processing can significantly improve data quality and reduce human errors.
In simple terms, RBI is working on improving the accuracy and transparency of financial data, which will lead to better governance and stronger trust in India’s financial system.
5. Steel Under Siege: Understanding the Impact of Dumping on India
Authored by Anirban Sanyal and Sanjay Singh, this article explains how cheap steel imports have affected India’s domestic steel industry in 2023–24 and 2024–25.
Key Highlights:
- Low-cost imports from major global producers led to a surge in steel imports in India.
- This has hurt domestic steel production, as cheaper imported steel replaced locally produced steel.
- The price elasticity of imports (0.73–1.01) shows that Indian steel imports are highly sensitive to price — lower international prices encourage more imports.
- To protect local industries, the government introduced safeguard duties on imported steel, helping to reduce unfair dumping practices.
In simple words, cheap foreign steel has created problems for Indian manufacturers, but government actions are helping protect the domestic industry.
What the RBI Bulletin October 2025 Means for India
The RBI Bulletin October 2025 gives a clear picture of a resilient Indian economy that continues to grow despite global challenges.
- Inflation is under control.
- Corporate India is healthier and more profitable.
- Small and Medium Enterprises are expanding through IPOs.
- The RBI is improving data quality and transparency in the financial system.
- And the steel industry is being safeguarded against cheap imports.
Overall, the Bulletin highlights India’s journey of resilience, reform, and revival — showing strong fundamentals and a forward-looking approach toward sustainable economic growth.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is the RBI Bulletin?
The RBI Bulletin is a monthly publication by the Reserve Bank of India that includes key data, policy updates, research articles, and expert insights on the Indian economy, banking, and finance.
2. What are the main highlights of the October 2025 RBI Bulletin?
The October 2025 Bulletin focuses on:
- India’s strong economic recovery,
- Growth in private corporate profits,
- Rise in SME IPO fundraising,
- Introduction of a new data quality model for banks, and
- Challenges faced by the steel industry due to cheap imports.
3. What does the RBI say about inflation in 2025?
The RBI report states that CPI inflation dropped sharply in September 2025, reaching its lowest level since June 2017, which is a positive sign for the economy.
4. How is India’s corporate sector performing after COVID-19?
India’s corporate sector has recovered strongly, with sales, profits, and balance sheets showing significant improvement compared to the pandemic years.
5. Why are SME IPOs gaining popularity?
SMEs are increasingly using IPOs to raise funds for expansion. The growth of SME exchanges and strong investor confidence have made IPOs an attractive option for small businesses.
6. What is the Data Quality Index (DQI) mentioned by the RBI?
The DQI is a framework that helps the RBI measure and improve the accuracy, consistency, and reliability of data collected from financial institutions.
7. What issues are affecting India’s steel industry?
The steel sector has faced cheap imports (dumping) from other countries, which affected domestic producers. However, safeguard duties have been introduced to protect the local industry.
8. Where can I read the full RBI Bulletin?
You can read or download the complete RBI Bulletin October 2025 from the official RBI website: www.rbi.org.in