The RBA keeps the steady hand in June – UOB

Economist at UOB Group Lee Sue Ann assesses the latest RBA event (June 1).

Key Quotes

“In its June meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), as expected, decided to maintain the current policy settings, including the targets of 10 basis points for both the cash rate and the yield on the 3-year Australian Government bond, as well as the parameters of the Term Funding Facility and the government bond purchase program.”

“Today’s accompanying statement was similar to the one in May, where the Board is committed to maintaining highly supportive monetary conditions to support a return to full employment in Australia and inflation consistent with the target. It will not increase the cash rate until actual inflation is sustainably within the 2 to 3 per cent target range. For this to occur, the labour market will need to be tight enough to generate wages growth that is materially higher than it is currently. This is unlikely to be until 2024 at the earliest.”

“Once again, the RBA stated that at its July meeting the Board will consider whether to retain the April 2024 bond as the target bond for the 3-year yield target or to shift to the next maturity, the November 2024 bond. The Board is not considering a change to the target of 10 basis points. At the July meeting the Board will also consider future bond purchases following the completion of the second $100 billion of purchases under the government bond purchase program in September. The Board continues to place a high priority on a return to full employment.”