Economic News

Mark two dates on the calendar: 25 November and 8 December. The first brings the next monthlyConsumer Price Indexrelease. The second, at 2.30 pm, brings the Reserve Bank's finalMonetary Policydecision of 2026. Between them, they will determine whether the year ends with a sixth …

When Sarah Hunter sat down for an interview that aired on 25 October 2026, the cash rate stood at 4.60% and she referred to "four rate hikes this year". Nine days later, on 3 November, theMonetary PolicyBoard made it five, lifting the cash rate …

One number in the November Statement onMonetary Policy(SMP) shows how far the inflation picture has darkened since winter. The Reserve Bank now forecasts year-ended headline CPI inflation of 4.5% for December 2026. In the August Statement, the forecast for the same period was 3.6%.

For more than three years, the Reserve Bank has been working to a destination:Inflationback inside its 2–3% target range, with the aim of settling at the 2.5% midpoint. On 3 November 2026, the expected arrival time at that destination moved again, and not in …

Central bank forecasts tend to move in small steps. A tenth of a percentage point here, two tenths there. The Reserve Bank's November 2026 Statement onMonetary Policy(SMP), released at 2.30 pm AEDT on 3 November, breaks that pattern. Its headline inflation forecast for December …

Fuel prices swing. Holiday airfares jump and fall. Fruit and vegetable prices shift with the weather. ACentral Bankthat reacted to every one of those movements would be setting policy on noise. That is why the Reserve Bank pays such close attention to the trimmed …

Every quarter, the Reserve Bank publishes its Statement onMonetary Policy(SMP), setting out how it sees the economy and where it expects inflation,Unemploymentand growth to head. The November 2026 edition, released at 2.30 pm AEDT on 3 November alongside the Monetary Policy Board's decision, opens …