Reserve Bank increases OCR to 6.50 per cent
The Reserve Bank has increased the Official Cash Rate from 6.25 per cent to 6.50 per cent.
Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard said "New Zealand's economy is still performing strongly and recent domestic economic
data has delivered positive surprises. Resources will remain stretched for some time yet, and there are still inflation
pressures.
"However, the recent monetary policy tightenings still have to work their way through the economy, and the high exchange
rate will also have its effect. Given this, we believe that the current settings of monetary policy are now doing enough
to ensure price stability as defined in the Reserve Bank's Policy Targets Agreement.
"The Reserve Bank will continue to monitor events as they unfold. The release of the Bank's next Monetary Policy
Statement is scheduled for Thursday 9 December 2004.
ENDS