New Zealand: RBNZ keeps rates unchanged – ANZ

The NZD/USD pair has jumped with news from The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) rallying 1%. The pair has now stabilized at 0.6465. ANZ researchers analyze the RBNZ statement.

Key quotes

“The RBNZ today left the OCR unchanged at 1.0% while leaving the door open to further action if required.”

“As expected, the RBNZ revised down its near-term growth forecast on coronavirus disruptions but remains optimistic on the medium-term outlook, anticipating a pick-up in growth in the second half of the year.”

“The RBNZ expects 0.4% q/q GDP growth in Q4 (previously 0.6%), and have also trimmed their Q1 growth forecast to 0.4% (previously 0.7%).”

“Headline inflation is expected lift to 2.2% in Q1 2020, but moderate to 1.7% by Q1 2021. Inflation is forecast to average 2% over the forecast horizon.”