Having put the NZ economy to sleep, the country’s central bank is now trying to stop it sliding further into a freeze with a 0.5% cut in the official cash rate to back up the August trim of 0.25%.
The latest cut puts the official cash rate at 4.75% as the central bank’s monetary policy committee said that "annual consumer price inflation is within its 1 to 3 percent inflation target range and converging on the 2 percent midpoint.”
The committee said in a post-meeting statement that it had agreed "it is appropriate to cut the OCR by 50 basis points to achieve and maintain low and stable inflation, while seeking to avoid unnecessary instability in output, employment, interest rates, and the exchange rate."
"Economic activity in New Zealand is subdued, in part due to restrictive monetary policy. Business investment and consumer spending have been weak, and employment conditions continue to soften. Low productivity growth is also constraining activity."
Internationally, while some exporters have benefited from improved export prices. the statement said "global economic growth remains below trend. The outlook for the United States and China is for growth to slow, while geopolitical tensions remain a significant headwind for world economic activity."
"The New Zealand economy is now in a position of excess capacity, encouraging price- and wage-setting to adjust to a low-inflation economy. Lower import prices have assisted the disinflation,” the statement added.
