In Australian news this week, the Reserve Bank of Australia decided to raise its monetary policy rate for the 10th consecutive meeting. The increase of 0.25 percentage points took the official rate to 3.60 per cent, the highest level since May 2012.
In economic news this week, the Australian Bureau of Statistics published the Wages Price Index for the December quarter of 2022. Wages were said to have risen by 0.8 per cent in the quarter, bringing the annual rate of increase to 3.3 per cent.
In Australian banking news, as part of the corporate earnings season, Westpac has revealed that 45 per cent of its home loans were made with a ‘serviceability buffer’ that assumed an interest rate that will now be surpassed (2.5 to 3 per cent) if the Reserve Bank continues its rate rising cycle.
Portfolio company Certa hasreleased results of the Phase 2 clinical trialof its novel therapy for Scleroderma (an inflammatory skin thickening condition that can also affect a range of internal organs).
Semiconductor company Morse Micro and electronics manufacturer Chicony Electronics are partnering to commercialize Wi-Fi Certified HaLow IoT cameras, in what the companies claim is an industry first.
In a quiet week for economic and market news, its was reported on Tuesday that two separate surveys of consumer confidence show it has fallen to new lows in January, as interest rate increases force households to make cutbacks.
The Reserve Bank of Australia decided on Tuesday to raise its official policy rate by 0.25 percentage points to 3.35 per cent. The ninth consecutive rate rise since May 2021. Immediate commentary The Governor indicated that new economic forecasts out later this week would show the economy slowing to 1.5 per cent this year, in line with the RBA’s expectations back in November 2022.
