The Reserve Bank of Australia monetary policy board meeting is today
- Announcement due at 0330GMT
- The expectation is unanimous that the bank will leave rates on hold
I've posted up some previews last week, for example: Reuters poll on outlook for the RBA: 64/64 polled see on hold next week
The accompanying statement will be the focus given rates will be unchanged:
ANZ:
- We expect much discussion will revolve around the labour market and the ongoing weakness in wages growth
- As such we will be watching closely the Bank's comments on wages and the labour market in the post-meeting statement
JP Morgan:
- The commentary is also expected to stick largely to script
- The Bank reiterating the well-established themes of the past few months
- It will be worth keeping a close eye on how the Bank views developments in Australia's terms of trade, as well as the labour market
Westpac:
- The Board is certain to keep rates on hold despite the prospect of a weak prin tfor GDP growth in Australia in the September quarter
- Westpac's current estimate is 0.2% - the lowest since March quarter 2011
- It appears that the new Governor Lowe has decided that any benefits to the economy from a further short term boost to housing and spending from even lower interest rates would not justify the potential risks around household debt that even lower interest rates might bring
Citi
- Governor Lowe is likely to take the advice of former Governor Glenn Stevens and chill out for at least a few months over the Australian summer
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ps. Q3 GDP data is due tomorrow (Wednesday Australian time, oo30GMT 7 December 2016)