Economic Weekly: Interest rates and the Middle East heat up
- Well, the RBNZ decision didn't go quite as we had anticipated
- We had thought there was plenty of scope for the RBNZ to hold off on lifting interest rates, given that the inflation outlook (for now at least!) appears more comfortable than it did back when the RBNZ last met
- However, Monetary Policy Committee members retained enough concern about the medium-term inflation risks that in the end it was a unanimous decision to lift the OCR
Contact us
Mark Smith
Senior Economist
Mark joined ASB in 2017, with over 20 years of public and private sector experience working as an economist in New Zealand and the UK.
His resume includes lengthy stints at ANZ and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, and he has also worked at the Bank of England, HM Treasury and the New Zealand Transport Agency. Mark's areas of specialisation include interest rate strategy, macro-economic analysis and urban economics.
Born and bred in the Waikato, Mark studied at Waikato University where he graduated with a Master of Social Sciences, majoring in Economics.
Mark's key strengths are the ability to use his extensive experience, inquisitive nature, analytical ability, creativity and pragmatism to dig a little deeper and to deliver common sense solutions to tackle complex problems.
When not at work Mark likes to travel, keep fit and spend time with his friends and family.
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Email: Mark