Stats NZ data showed the consumer price index rose 0.6 percent in the three months ended December, raising the the annual inflation rate 3.1 percent from 3.0 percent, the highest since June last year. The inflation numbers were just above economists' expectations, and more than double the Reserve Bank's (RBNZ) dated 0.2 percent quarterly and 2.7 percent annual forecasts, which were made in November. Various measures of underlying inflation pointed to an annual rate remaining steady at around 2.5 percent. The consensus among analysts has been the RBNZ will hold the official cash rate (OCR) at 2.25 percent until early next year. New Zealand's inflation rate was lower than Australia, the UK and the OECD's average of 3.9 percent, but above the sub-3 percent levels of the US and the European Union.
