"New inflation risks are emerging post-budget, so it will have to sound hawkish - but not overly so," says financial services company BNP Paribas, adding that it expects two 25-bps rate hikes in the second half of 2018. But some analysts say a rate hike in 2018 is far from certain, as the RBI has to be careful not to slow an economy that needs rapid growth to create jobs.