RBNZ’s Less Hawkish Stance Drags Down Kiwi, Fuels Rate-Cut Bets
- Central bank holds official cash rate at 5.5%, as expected
- Kiwi dollar and bond yields tumble on expected policy pivot
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New Zealand’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged for an eighth straight meeting but toned down its hawkish rhetoric, suggesting it could ease monetary policy sooner than previously signaled.
The Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee held the Official Cash Rate at 5.5% Wednesday in Wellington, as expected. It reiterated that policy needs to remain restrictive, but added that the extent of restraint will be tempered as inflation slows.