RBA Deputy Governor Hauser says CPI numbers are in line with expectations, but are still too high

RBA Deputy Governor Hauser says CPI numbers are in line with expectations, but are still too high.

RBA officials have repeatedly characterised Australian inflation as acceptable in direction but too high in level, a formulation that in past episodes has signalled policy on hold rather than imminent easing. Comments of this kind from the deputy governor tend to carry weight as a read on the board's centre of gravity, given the role's proximity to the staff forecasts, and front-end repricing has historically been muted when the remarks merely confirm the existing stance rather than shift it. The operative distinction is between inflation that is too high to cut and too high to hold: the former keeps the cash rate steady, the latter reopens the hiking tail, and remarks framed around 'still too high' leave that question deliberately open. The tells are whether 'in line with expectations' refers to the RBA's own quarterly forecasts or to market consensus, since alignment with the staff projection path is what conditions the next decision. Attention sits with subsequent board-speak ahead of the next meeting and with the quarterly CPI relative to the trimmed mean, which has been the board's preferred gauge through this cycle. As commentary rather than a decision, the signal is directional: it closes the door on near-term easing without adding new information on timing.