RBNZ interest rate unchanged
28 April 2011
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand left the Official Cash Rate (OCR) unchanged at 2.5 percent today. Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard said: “The outlook for the New Zealand economy remains very uncertain following February’s Christchurch earthquake. “As was expected, business confidence, consumer spending and tourism activity all declined sharply following the earthquake. Confidence and consumer spending have since shown signs of recovery, but many firms and households remain adversely affected in Christchurch. To date, activity in the rest of the country appears relatively unaffected, with housing market turnover and business investment beginning to increase. Bollard added “Given the outlook for core inflation and continued economic disruption stemming from the earthquakes, the current level of the OCR is likely to remain appropriate for some time.” The NZD dropped 50 cents shortly after the decision.