UPDATE: Bollard holds OCR; expects to hike about mid-year
The official cash rate (OCR) remains unchanged at 2.5%.
The statement was nearly identical to Bollard's last statement in December but left out comments about some uncertainties including whether increased household spending would follow rising house prices.
"You get the sense of slightly greater clarity about the first tightening being about the middle of the year," says Darren Gibbs at Deutsche Bank. "There's a sense of greater confidence."
Gibbs still expects Bollard to start hiking the OCR in April. "I get the feeling that the next couple of months' data is going to look reasonably solid. We will get some confirmation the economy is moving forward at a more solid rate."
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