Weak economy prompts dovish Reserve Bank pivot, more OCR cuts likely

The RBNZ's move surprised markets. (Image: Depositphotos)

Thu, 21 Aug 2025

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s surprisingly dovish pivot was triggered by weaker-than-expected economic activity. “We have revised down significantly our official cash rate [OCR] projection in the document, that's largely around the news about the starting point for the economy,” Reserve Bank of NZ (RBNZ) governor Christian Hawkesby said. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Wednesday voted to cut the OCR by 25 basis points to 3% by four votes to two. The other two were holding out for a 50-basis-point cut....

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