I already tweeted this:
Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) – announces NO CHANGE to rates, cash rate remains at 2.50% – As we all expected
Headlines from the accompanying statement:
- AUD remains high by historical standards
- Prudent to have period of stability for rates
- Notes commodity prices important to Australia, have declined further in recent months
- Inflation expected to be consistent with target
- Says most data consistent with moderate growth in the economy
- Credit growth moderate, but lending to investors has picked up
- Says some areas of private demand outside mining are seeing expansion at varying rates
- Growth expected to be a little below trend over next several quarters
- Says jobs data have been unusually volatile
- Will probably be some time before unemployment falls consistently
Quick Headlines via Reuters
Link to the full text: Statement by Glenn Stevens, Governor: Monetary Policy Decision
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Here is the final paragraph from the accompanying statement:
- In the Board’s judgement, monetary policy is appropriately configured to foster sustainable growth in demand and inflation outcomes consistent with the target. On present indications, the most prudent course is likely to be a period of stability in interest rates.
Which I guess means …. a sneak preview of next month’s policy decision … No change …
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Comment from the Financial Times (via FastFT, gated):
Australia’s central bank is increasingly concerned with an unbalanced housing market but it stopped short of actually introducing new policy measures to cool the market on Tuesday.
In its monetary policy statement the Reserve Bank of Australia merely said “dwelling prices have continued to rise over recent months.”
The statement lacked any signs that it would unveil measures to stabilise the housing market, as some analysts had anticipated.
