The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has left the official cash rates alone—for now.
Widely tipped by economists to raise the rates by at least one quarter of one per cent, the RBA has left the rates unchanged at 4.5 per cent.
A .25 basis point rise would have added around $50 a month to repayments on a $300,000 mortgage if passed on by the banks.
The RBA had been hinting that the economy was robust and a rise was on the cards, but Reserve Bank governor, Glenn Stevens, said there had not been enough upward pressure to warrant the rise.
“Asset values are not moving notably in either direction, and overall credit growth is quite subdued at this stage,” he said in a statement.
Mr Stevens did not, however, rule out a rise in the near future.
“If economic conditions evolve as the Board currently expects, it is likely that higher interest rates will be required, at some point, to ensure that inflation remains consistent with the medium-term target,” he said.
Widely tipped by economists to raise the rates by at least one quarter of one per cent, the RBA has left the rates unchanged at 4.5 per cent.
A .25 basis point rise would have added around $50 a month to repayments on a $300,000 mortgage if passed on by the banks.
The RBA had been hinting that the economy was robust and a rise was on the cards, but Reserve Bank governor, Glenn Stevens, said there had not been enough upward pressure to warrant the rise.
“Asset values are not moving notably in either direction, and overall credit growth is quite subdued at this stage,” he said in a statement.
Mr Stevens did not, however, rule out a rise in the near future.
“If economic conditions evolve as the Board currently expects, it is likely that higher interest rates will be required, at some point, to ensure that inflation remains consistent with the medium-term target,” he said.
