The Reserve Bank of India said that the current state of the economy provides ground for optimism going forward, and India will remain the fastest-growing major economy, notwithstanding elevated geopolitical risks and policy uncertainty ahead. In a bulletin, the Reserve Bank said on Wednesday that the year 2026 began with an escalation of geopolitical tensions, marked by developments such as the US intervention in Venezuela, the simmering conflict in the Middle East, ambiguity surrounding the Russia–Ukraine peace deal, and escalation of the row over Greenland, all of which point to still-elevated geo-economic risks and policy uncertainty ahead.