Conway Sticks To Post-Meeting Script

RBNZ chief economist Conway reaffirms the messaging seen at the conclusion of last week’s monetary policy meeting, pointing to inflation that is far too high alongside elevated levels of uncertainty re: the economic outlook. He stressed that household spending has been stronger than expected while pointing to forecasts for slower consumption as interest rates rise (which the Bank is starting to see signs of), underscoring the need for further rate hikes which will cool the economy (pointing to the peak 5.50% in the Bank’s OCR track). He also noted that he is unaware of any plans to alter loan-to-value ratio settings when it comes to the mortgage market.