New Zealand
New Zealand Gets 50 Basis Point Rate Cut to 2.5%
March 9, 2011
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand Reduced its Official Cash Rate by 50 basis points to 2.5%, returning to the cyclical low maintained for 14 months following 575 basis points of ease between July 2008 and end-April 2009. A statement released by RBNZ Governor Bollard projects “quite weak” economic growth in the first half of […] More
Waiting for the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Interest Rate Announcement
March 9, 2011
Damages from the South Island earthquake on February 23rd may exceed 7.5% of of New Zealand GDP and perhaps even reach 10% of it. A majority but by no means all analysts expect the Reserve Bank of New Zealand at 20:00 GMT today to announce a cut in its 3.0% Official Cash Rate as a […] More
New Zealand Official Cash Rate Held at 3.0%
December 9, 2010
Like the Bank of Korea, New Zealand’s central bank has so far implemented just two rate increases of 25 basis points each, which were implemented in June and July of this year. Today, as at the previous interest rate policy meetings, no further change in rates was made. A statement from the Reserve Bank of […] More
New Zealand Official Cash Rate Unchanged
October 27, 2010
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand left the OCR rate at 3.0% as it had also done on September 16 following back-to-back increases of 25 basis points each in June and July. A statement from the RBNZ noted some weaker-than-projected data released recently but believes the recovery is intact because of coming support form high […] More
New Zealand Monetary Tightening Paused
September 15, 2010
New Zealand’s Official Cash Rate was left unchanged at 3.0%, having been hiked by 25 basis points each at the prior two meetings on July 29 and June 10. Opinions had been split over whether a third increase would be sanctioned. The July statement conceded that the “pace and extent of further OCR increases is […] More
New Zealand Central Bank Rate Raised But Statement Signals Greater Caution
July 28, 2010
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has implemented a second 25-basis point rate increase. The first was announced June 10, and today’s lifts the rate to 3.0%. The central bank’s statement was less hawkish than June’s communique. Growth had been called broad-based seven weeks ago, but in contrast considerable discussion this time is spend on “subdued […] More
Weaker Aussie and New Zealand Dollars
July 28, 2010
The U.S. dollar advanced 1.0% and 0.7% against its Australian and New Zealand counterparts but was pretty steady otherwise. The Greenback dipped 0.3% against the loonie, 0.2% relative to the Swissy and yen, and 0.1% against the euro. The dollar rose 0.1% against sterling and is again unchanged versus the yuan. Stocks rose sharply overnight […] More
Slump in Japanese Equities
July 16, 2010
A 2.9% plunge in the Nikkei, its worst session in nearly six weeks, led a difficult day for Pacific Rim equities. Weakness in stocks reflected yesterday’s poor indications of U.S. manufacturing and a disappointing earnings report from Google. Stocks fell by 0.8% in South Korea, 0.7% in the Philippines, and 0.5% in New Zealand, Australian, […] More
New Zealand Gets First Rate Increase
June 9, 2010
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) raised its Official Cash Rate (OCR) to 2.75% from 2.5%, which had been the OCR level since a 50-basis point cut in April 2009. Most but not all analysts anticipated the move. Central bank officials project a more broadly-based recovery with 3.5% GDP growth in both 2010 and […] More
Weaker Euro, Pound and Swiss Franc
May 13, 2010
The dollar has advanced 0.4% against sterling, 0.3% versus the Swissy, and 0.2% against the euro, but it has softened against commodity-sensitive currencies like the Aussie dollar (0.6%), kiwi (0.5%) and Canadian dollar (0.6%). Concerns persist that the EU rescue package will not prove adequate and about the impact of coming austerity. Britain’s new Conservative-led […] More
