Borrowers warned to brace for more bad news from the Reserve Bank

Borrowers should brace for another cost-of-living blow on Wednesday when the Reserve Bank issues its final monetary policy statement for the year, if economists’ forecasts are on the mark. The Reserve Bank will also publish its first new forecasts since August on where it sees the official cash rate, inflation and unemployment heading over the next three years. ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr and the rest of the bank’s monetary policy committee have a tough call to make this week. But it said if there was to be a surprise on Wednesday, “a 50bp hike is more likely than 100bp”. But Toplis said the Reserve Bank would not want to appear to be going soft on inflation.