At its meeting today, the Reserve Bank of Australia have decided once again to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.50%

• The global economy has strengthened over the past year. A number of advanced economies are growing at an above-trend rate and unemployment rates are low.
• The pick-up in the global economy has contributed to a rise in oil and other commodity prices
• The Bank's forecast is for the Australian economy to grow faster in 2018 than it did in 2017. Business conditions are positive and non-mining business investment is increasing. Higher levels of public infrastructure investment are also supporting the economy.
• The housing markets in Sydney and Melbourne have slowed. Nationwide measures of housing prices are little changed over the past six months, with prices having recorded falls in some areas.

The Board judged that holding the stance of monetary policy unchanged at this meeting would be consistent with sustainable growth in the economy and achieving the inflation target over time.

To view the full statement of Phillip Lowe, Governor of the Reserve Bank, please click here.

Published : 06 Mar 2018