Westpac Banking Corporation

We expect the RBNZ to cut the OCR by 25bp to 3.25%. We see the RBNZ’s OCR profile being revised down by around 20bp to around 2.9% by the end of 2025. Beyond this meeting a data dependent easing bias […]

Key insights from the week that was. In Australia, Westpac-MI Consumer Sentiment rose 2.2% to 92.1% in May, representing a partial rebound from a subdued result in April that partly captured President Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’. There have been many developments

Pencilling in an extra OCR cut to 3% while risks persist Past data look consistent with a gradually recovering economy as expected. In the near term, inflation looks set to remain in the top half of the 1-3% range. But

Key insights from the week that was. In Australia, the February Labour Force Survey provided a major surprise relative to market expectations. The main result was a significant contraction in the size of the labour force, seeing the participation rate

The past month has seen an abrupt turn in sentiment towards the US economy and the US dollar. Whereas a month ago, the market seemed convinced the US dollar would move higher from its already historically-elevated level of 108 on

A single event or trend never occurs in isolation. Reactions to it, as well as independent forces working in the opposite direction, mean the net overall effect can be uncertain and changeable. This week we release our Market Outlook for

Key insights from the week that was. In Australia, GDP printed broadly as expected in Q4 2024, rising 0.6%qtr to be up 1.3% over the year. On a per capita basis, GDP rose for the first time in two years,

Businesses remain very upbeat about the year ahead. There are also some signs that current conditions are gradually improving. Key results (November 2024) Business confidence: 64.9 (Prev: 65.7) Expectations for own trading activity: 48.0 (Prev: 45.9) Activity vs same month

The RBNZ cut the OCR by 50bps to 4.25% at its final policy meeting for this year. The RBNZ’s OCR forecast profile was revised down as expected and now shows the OCR at 3.55% at the end of 2025. The

Employment: +15.9k (from +61.3k). Unemployment Rate: 4.1% (from 4.1%). Participation Rate: 67.1% (from 67.2%). In October, employment rose by +15.9k (0.1%), slightly below Westpac’s forecast of +20k and under the market consensus forecast of +25k. This marks the softest monthly