Bullock plays down hopes of outsized May rate cut as RBA warily eyes Trump trade war

Governor’s speech flags rocky path ahead and gives no indication of increasing the pace of rate cuts in 2025

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The Reserve Bank of Australia governor says it is “too early” to judge how Donald Trump’s trade war will affect interest rates over coming months, while hosing down forecasts the bank will issue a double rate cut in May.

Michele Bullock’s measured tone on Thursday evening in Melbourne gave no indication of a central bank that sees the need, at least at this stage, to accelerate the pace of rate cuts in 2025, as many economists now expect.

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