An oasis of record low interest rates

If global equity markets are fearing higher interest rates, as this week’s fall suggest, then Australia and New Zealand offer something of an oasis as both the RBA and RBNZ dropped some heavy hints last week that they are in no rush to raise interest rates. This doesn’t mean Australian and New Zealand equity markets are immune to any further global weakness, but it may mean that their bond yields don’t rise as far as elsewhere and that their currencies weaken.