Monetary policy FAQs
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At the Reserve Bank of New Zealand responsibility and accountability for monetary policy rests on one individual − the Governor of the Reserve Bank. For further information, read the role, structure and governance arrangements section in the current Briefing on the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
Have a look in the monetary policy section for relevant articles and information. If you need more historical information, the back issues of the Reserve Bank Bulletin are a good place to start looking. You should be able to find copies at your local school or university library.
The latest Monetary Policy Statement is available in PDF format from the Reserve Bank website shortly after 9.00am on the day of its release. Subscribers to the RSS news feed, the Reserve Bank email service, and Twitter receive Monetary Policy Statement news releases, OCR announcements and other public statements after they are posted on the website.
The Upcoming OCR/MPS announcements box located on the Monetary Policy Statement page provides a schedule of MPS and OCR announcements.
Information on the current state of the New Zealand economy and business cycle is contained in our Monetary Policy Statement (MPS).
When average prices throughout the economy go up, that’s inflation. The flip side of inflation is deflation, when average prices are falling. Read What is inflation? to find out more.
The inflation rate (CPI) is calculated by Statistics New Zealand, but the Reserve Bank republishes some data tables on this website in the Statistics section. Also don’t forget to read What is inflation?
The Policy Targets Agreement is an agreement between the Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Reserve Bank that sets out specific targets for achieving and maintaining price stability. Read our fact sheet What is the Policy Targets Agreement? to find out more.
The Official Cash Rate is an interest rate set by the Reserve Bank to implement monetary policy, so as to maintain price stability. Read our fact sheet What is the Official Cash Rate? to find out more.
Near elections or when the Policy Targets Agreement (PTA) is up for renegotiation, the Reserve Bank prepares a briefing on the role and functions of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
The Trade Weighted Index weightings are updated in December each year.
A bank bill is a bill of exchange issued by a bank on behalf of a company, as a promise to pay specific amounts by a due date, usually 30, 60 or 90 days ahead. To buy some you would need to talk to a broker or a financial adviser at a registered bank. This key graph shows the path of 90-day bank bill rates and the OCR.
