Catching analysts off guard, the Reserve Bank of India today hiked the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points to 7.5 per cent but has kept its key lending rate unchanged at 7.75 per cent. However, the other key rates including the repo and reverse repo rates have remained unchanged at 6.0 per cent while the bank rate remain stays steady at 6.0 per cent.

From 10 November the CRR will stand at its highest level since November 2001.

The hike comes in to force from 10 November, after its last hike in August following the apex bank''s first quarter review of the annual monetary policy for 2007-08 on 31 July when it hiked the CRR by 50 bps to 7 per cent from 6.5 per cent.

The RBI left its growth forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2008 unchanged at 8.5 percent.

Responding to the unexpected hike, KV Kamath, CEO and MD of ICICI Bank told CNBC-TV18 that a CRR hike doesn''t necessarily mean hike in interest rates, though he added that a CRR hike would mean a re-think on interest rates.

SBI Chariman OP Bhatt said felt that an interest rates revision was unlikely. CRR hike is an ''upfront attack on liquidity, he added.