For the past two years, hopeful winters have given way to disappointing springs, as the global economy appears to have removed itself from the clutches of the financial crisis -- only to stumble, sapping momentum. Worries that recent history will repeat in 2012 are about to grow louder. The Reserve Bank of Australia cut its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point Tuesday, dropping the cash rate to 3.75 per cent. Only a handful of analysts predicted such an aggressive cut; most anticipated a quarter-point move. The Australian dollar fell, as did bond yields. Australia’s central bank is something of a herald ... (full story)