Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) preview: No change expected in the Official Cash Rate

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand meeting this week is scheduled for November 29. The announcement is due at 2pm, local New Zealand time:

• which is 0100 GMT, and 2000 US Eastern time on Tuesday the 28th
• the current RBNZ Official Cash Rate (OCR) is 5.5% and there is no expectation of any change in this

From the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER), the recommendation of its ‘Shadow Board’ is to leave the cash rate at 5.5%. The Shadow Board said, in summary, that some members felt that the Reserve Bank would be somewhat reassured that the OCR increases to date would be sufficient to limit inflation back towards its 1 to 3 percent inflation goal zone given recent developments in the labour market, inflation, and waves of mortgage refixing. That is, most recent data also shows a reduction in labour market pressures and inflation, and many households are switching now to considerably higher mortgage rates.