Aussie Dollar/Kiwi
Third 25-Basis Point Hike This Quarter in Australian Cash Rate
December 1, 2009
The Reserve Bank of Australia Policy Board raised the cash rate to 3.75% from 3.5%. A solid majority of analysts were expecting this outcome but with less confidence than a week ago. A statement from the central bank said their November quarterly policy statement’s conclusions and recommendation of a gradual lessening of stimulus remain intact. […] More
Australian Interest Rate Preview
November 30, 2009
Most analysts had comfortably assumed that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will announce a third 25-basis point rate hike at 01:30 GMT on Tuesday in follow-through to similar 25-bp increases on October 6 and November 3rd. That remains the baseline consensus, but confidence in the forecast has diminished. The case for a hike rests […] More
Australian Cash Rate Lifted 25 Basis Points to 3.5%
November 3, 2009
Monetary officials raised their benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points for a second consecutive month and released a similar statement to the first one, declaring the danger passed of a serious economic contraction and predicting near-trend and near-target inflation over the coming twelve months in spite of some drag from a firmer Aussie dollar. […] More
Australia Likely to Get A Second Interest Rate Hike on Tuesday
November 2, 2009
In October, the Reserve Bank of Australia became the first G-20 central bank to lift its benchmark interest rate. The cash rate, which had previously dropped in six moves between September 2008 and April 2009 from a cyclical peak of 7.25% to a 49-year low of 3.0%, was increased to 3.25%. I expect a follow-up […] More
New Zealand Cash Rate To Stay Low Through Mid-2010
October 29, 2009
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand implemented seven reductions of its cash rate between July 24, 2008 and April 30, 2009 from a year-long peak of 8.25% to a trough of 2.5%. After the April 30th meeting, officials indicated that the benchmark rate was unlikely to move above 2.5% before the second half of 2010. […] More
Aussie Rate Hike Just The Beginning
October 6, 2009
The 25-basis point hike in the Reserve Bank’s cash rate to 3.25% is first increase since March 2008 and ends a streak of six cuts between September 2008 and April 2009 totaling 425 basis points. That very sharp rate decline to a 49-year low braced for what officials expected to be “a serious economic contraction […] More
Australian Monetary Policy Meeting Preview
October 5, 2009
Markets are pricing in a 25-basis point hike in the Reserve Bank of Australia’s cash rate no later than December, and many think the move will be announced Tuesday. Australian growth of 2.5% at a seasonally adjusted annual rate last quarter was triple the strength of what analysts had forecast. Retail sales in the latest […] More
Dovish Statement From the Reserve Bank of New Zealand
September 9, 2009
The RBNZ did not cut its 2.5% official cash rate (OCR) for a third straight meeting, matching consensus market expectations, but an easing bias was kept that “expects to keep the OCR at or below the current level through until the latter part of 2010.” The latest statement from Governor Bollard a patchy recovery now […] More
Other Central Bank Meetings on Thursday
September 9, 2009
Central bank rate announcements will also be made in South Korea, Peru and New Zealand, the last of which is due in less than two hours. From a high of 8.25% in the summer of 2008, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand implemented 575 basis points worth of cuts in the following sequence: 50 basis […] More
Australian Cash Rate To Remain At 3.0%
September 2, 2009
At a meeting on Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.0%, a level it considers “accommodative” yet “appropriate.” The cash rate was last cut by 25 basis points on April 8th. The first of six reductions was also by 25 basis points from 7.25% to 7.0%. In between, […] More
