RBA's Assistant Governor Hunter says Australia household spending is holding up okay, adds inflation in Australia is still above its target, while Australia's business investment is showing signs of strength

The combination being described, resilient household spending, firming business investment, and inflation still above target, is the standard formulation used by central banks keeping the option of further tightening, or at least an extended hold, on the table rather than signalling any easing bias. The transmission channel in past episodes of this kind runs through the front end of the Australian curve and the rate-sensitive currency, with the size of the move typically depending on how the remarks sit against the prevailing pricing for the next meeting rather than on the remarks themselves. The distinction worth drawing is between describing the economy as holding up, which is backward looking, and any hint on the policy response, which is what reprices. The follow-ons are whether other RBA speakers echo the same emphasis on above-target inflation and how the remarks frame the next quarterly inflation print, which has tended to be the decisive input for this board.