RBA Watch RBA will deliver back-to-back hikes in March and May We expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to raise rates by 25bp at its meeting ending on 17th March. The conditions for a sustained acceleration in inflation were in place even before the Iran conflict... 10th March 2026 · 8 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update Soaring oil prices may prompt RBNZ to hike this year The surge in energy prices will prompt the RBA to hike rates by another 25bp at its meeting next week and increases the chances that the RBNZ will start tightening policy before the end of the year. 9th March 2026 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Energy price spike more bane than boon for Australia Despite being a net energy exporter, Australia is unlikely to gain much from the ongoing surge in energy prices. This is largely because oil and gas firms are not reinvesting their profits to boost... 6th March 2026 · 4 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Rapid Response Australia Monthly Household Spending Indicator (Jan. 26) The tepid rise in consumer spending lessens the urgency for the RBA to hike rates at its upcoming meeting in mid-March. Even so, the Bank has more work to do in order to close the positive output gap... 5th March 2026 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update Australia's public sector adding to inflationary pressures Australia’s public sector can’t be blamed for the renewed acceleration in inflation across the second half of last year. But the inexorable surge in public spending in recent years is a key reason why... 4th March 2026 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Rapid Response Australia GDP (Q4 2025) Although the underlying details were a mixed bag, we suspect the RBA will still be concerned that growth is running above potential in Australia. 4th March 2026 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update Australia’s housing market loses some steam Australian house prices pared their gains in February, as housing demand softened a touch. Although the slowdown was driven largely by Sydney and Melbourne, we suspect it will become more broad-based... 2nd March 2026 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Aussie firms on capex spree, Ardern joins Kiwi exodus The evidence that the Australian economy is operating with excess demand continues to pile up. We learnt this week that private capex growth surged to a two-year high in Q4. Moreover, with firms... 27th February 2026 · 5 mins read
APAC Commercial Property Chart Pack APAC Commercial Property Chart Pack (Q1 2026) Asia-Pacific all-property capital value declines eased further in Q4 to minus 0.8% y/y, reinforcing signs that the market is bottoming out. Looking ahead, however, elevated risk-free rates and muted... 26th February 2026 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Chart Pack ANZ Chart Pack (Feb. 2026) Our ANZ Chart Pack has been updated with the latest data and our analysis of recent developments. The continued acceleration in Australia’s underlying inflation at the start of the year vindicates the... 25th February 2026 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Rapid Response Australia Consumer Prices (January 2026) Trimmed mean inflation climbed to a fresh high in January, consistent with our view that the Reserve Bank of Australia will keep tightening monetary policy. 25th February 2026 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Update New US tariff regime will rejig Asian electronics trade Trump’s new 15% global tariff rate reduces the tariff burden on most Asian countries, but the biggest winner is China. It still faces a higher tariff than countries elsewhere in the region, but the... 23rd February 2026 · 4 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly The case for back-to-back hikes by the RBA Data released this week continue to indicate that the Australian economy is running up against capacity constraints. The relatively modest pickup in wage growth last quarter belies the fact that unit... 20th February 2026 · 5 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Rapid Response Australia Labour Market (Jan. 26) With the January labour force survey confirming that the labour market is tightening rather than loosening as the RBA had anticipated, the Bank has more work to do. 19th February 2026 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Rapid Response Australia Wage Price Index (Q4 2025) Although the pickup in wage growth last quarter was driven in part by one-off factors, a look under the hood suggests that wage pressures will be slow to recede over the year ahead. Insofar as that... 18th February 2026 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Australia still facing elevated capacity pressures Data released this week reinforce the need for the RBA to tighten policy settings. Provisional figures suggest that private consumption growth accelerated in Q4 and is running above the pace... 13th February 2026 · 6 mins read
