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Australia Rate-Hike Debate Set to Crescendo With Price Data
Debate over whether Australia’s central bank needs to deliver a late-cycle policy tightening is likely to be resolved with the release of quarterly inflation data this week — and the currency is set to be swept up in the fallout. Consumer prices probably advanced 3.8% in the second quarter from a year earlier, versus 3.6% in the prior period, economists predicted ahead of Wednesday’s release. A key core measure, trimmed mean inflation, which smooths out volatile prices, is seen holding at 4%. That’s above the Reserve Bank’s latest forecast of 3.8% and suggests limited progress in cooling prices. “If ... (full story)