MNI BRIEF: RBNZ Leaves OCR At 5.5%
The RBNZ's MPC believes its restrictive OCR will return inflation back to target this calander year.
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s monetary policy committee left its official cash rate at 5.5% Wednesday, noting the economy continued to evolve as anticipated.
In a statement, the MPC noted CPI remained above the 1-3% target range. “A restrictive monetary policy stance remains necessary to further reduce capacity pressures and inflation,” the committee added.
The MPC has left the cash rate at 5.5% since May 2023. The committee’s decision was largely anticipated. (See MNI RBNZ WATCH: MPC Set To Hold, Maintain Strong Stance)
The MPC added, while economic growth remained weak, it was confident maintaining the OCR at a restrictive level for a sustained period will return CPI back to target this calendar year.