State Bank of India chairman A K Purwar said on Friday that interest rates will remain stable in the short term despite rising inflation, and may not remain soft in the medium and long term.
"There is an inflationary pressure, but in view of ample liquidity in the system the rates will be stable in the short run," Purwar said in his reaction to the increase in wholesale price index to 7.96 per cent for the week ended August 7.
The rates would not be soft beyond the short term, he told newspersons after signing a pact with Infosys for installing Finacle IT platform at SBI's overseas branches.
Asked about the impact of inflation on bond yields and pressure on treasury profits, Purwar said SBI's balance sheet was strong and it would be able to deal with some more rise in inflation.