"The inflation outlook, as assessed at present, would afford scope to ease policy further, should that be necessary to support demand"
- RBA governor Glenn Stevens
Australia's central bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged for the second month in a row, as downside risks in the global economy appeared to have eased, while there were signs previous cuts were working. The Reserve Bank of Australia kept interest rates steady at 3.00%, meeting analysts' expectations. Nation's central bank has lowered interest rates six times since November 2011 to boost growth amid weakness in the world economy, while the last rate cut was done in December. Also Tuesday, data showed a pickup in retail sales, signalling improved consumer sentiment and spending. At the same time, country's home building gathered pace toward the end of 2012, while house prices have gained after almost three years of steady declines.
"The inflation outlook, as assessed at present, would afford scope to ease policy further, should that be necessary to support demand," said RBA governor Glenn Stevens. "During 2012, there was a significant easing in monetary policy," he noted.
"If the data does soften quite considerably over the coming months, the RBA will provide a more accommodative stance on policy and that's something we expect the Board to do," said Tom Kennedy, an economist at JPMorgan.
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