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# New Zealand's Reserve Bank held rates at 2.75% when almost everyone expected a rise
- URL: https://www.sharespective.com/stories/new-zealands-reserve-bank-held-rates-2026-10-29/
- Published: 2026-10-28T21:15:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-29T01:50:32.000Z
- Description: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand left the official cash rate at 2.75% on Wednesday afternoon. Markets had priced about a 90% chance of a quarter-point rise to 3%.
- Author: Shaun Botha
- Tags: Economy, #story, #group-economy

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand left the official cash rate at 2.75% on Wednesday afternoon. Markets had priced about a 90% chance of a quarter-point rise to 3%.

**The vote was as close as it gets.** Four of the seven committee members, including Governor Anna Breman, voted to hold. Paul Conway, Hayley Gourley and Karen Silk wanted the rise.

The majority said inflation was behaving better than feared. Prices rose 3.7% in the year to September, and 3.0% once vehicle fuel is taken out. Dearer fuel has also spilled into other prices less than the bank expected.

[![Chart: NZ's three-month rate climbed. The Reserve Bank held. NZ's three-month interbank rate by month, Jan 2020 to Sep 2026, in percent. It rose from 2.47% last November to 3.13%; the cash rate held at 2.75% on Wednesday.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/02/71/0271df32-cec6-421f-9f13-b06ab90e54c1/content/images/2026/10/chart-nz-interbank-rate-rose-2026-10-29-wide-light.jpg)](https://www.sharespective.com/chart-nz-interbank-rate-rose-2026-10-29/) 

This story’s chart of the day: the numbers, the dark version and the animated version are on its own page. [The chart’s page →](https://www.sharespective.com/chart-nz-interbank-rate-rose-2026-10-29/)

The kiwi fell about 1.6% against the US dollar after the announcement. The NZX 50 edged up 0.1%, led by companies that depend on the local economy, and Fletcher Building rose 5%.

All seven members agreed that tighter policy is likely to be needed, depending on the data. The bank still expects annual inflation of 4.4% in the December quarter, mostly because of fuel.

Worth pondering 

the bank says the next six weeks of information could move it in either direction. Its December decision comes with fresh forecasts, a month after the 7 November election, and that is the one borrowers should circle.

[ This story ran in Hold Everything Thursday 29 October’s edition, with the market snapshot, the other two stories, the numbers and the week ahead. Read the whole edition → ](https://www.sharespective.com/sharespective-2026-10-29/)