(RTTNews) - The Reserve Bank of Australia Thursday left New Zealand’s Official Cash Rate (OCR) unchanged at 2.5 percent.

RBNZ Governor Alan Bollard said the action came as monetary policy makers saw a bottoming-out of the nation’s economy. He added that rates are expected to remain at their current level, or go lower, into next year.

“There is more evidence that the decline in economic activity is coming to an end, and that a patch recovery is underway,” Bollard said in a statement accompanying the decision. “This is partly due to recovery in our trading partner economies in the June Quarter, and these look likely to continue expanding long term.”

Bollard said the picture was not entirely rosy. “The medium-term growth outlook remains weak,” he said. “”For growth to be sustained in the medium term there is a need for improved competitiveness in the export sector and a continued recovery of household savings.”

Bollard said the policy board feels support from low rates is expected to be needed for “some time.” He said board members “continue to expect to keep the OCR at or below the current level through until the latter part of 2010.”

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Posted in Categories: Australia, Economy, New Zealand, Releases.

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