-
Heat on Reserve Bank NZ to defend inflation target as living costs jump almost 5%
The Reserve Bank may need to rethink its stance on interest rates and next raise the official cash rate by 50 basis points to 1 per cent, after headline inflation rose to almost 5 per cent, Infometrics believes. Annual inflation jumped more than expected to 4.9 per cent in the September quarter, Statistics NZ reported on Monday, putting inflation almost 2 per cent above the top of the Reserve Bank’s target band. Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen said the inflation figure – combined with a stronger-than-expected 2.8 per cent increase in GDP previously reported for the June quarter – put pressure on the ... (full story)