[...] helped by lower oil prices, "both near-term and longer-term inflation expectations have eased to single digits for the first time since September 2009," the bank's governor, Raghuram Rajan, said in a statement. The central bank governor also noted "the government has reiterated its commitment to adhering to its fiscal deficit target" of 4.1 per cent of gross domestic product this year, as it prepares next year's budget for presentation in February. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who was pressing the bank to lower interest rates, said the move would "lead to more money in the hands of the consumer for greater spending" and "will certainly help in reviving the investment cycle the government is trying to restore."