Australia’s RBA to hold rates on March 19, cut later in year: Reuters poll

Australia's central bank will hold its key interest rate at 4.35% for a third straight meeting on Tuesday and at least until end-September, according to a Reuters poll of economists who see at least two rate cuts in the final quarter of 2024. While financial markets have priced in rate cuts for most other major central banks starting around June, the Reserve Bank of Australia is a notable outlier with no such mid-year pricing. Despite the RBA's recent hawkish stance and still-elevated inflation, no economist expected the next move to be up, with a variety of forecasts for a cut in the second half of this year given that economic growth has been lacklustre.