Statement by the Monetary Policy Board: Monetary Policy Decision | Media Releases | RBA
Central bank: rba | Type: statement | Date: 2025-12-09

Media Release
Statement by the Monetary Policy Board: Monetary Policy Decision
9 December 2025
At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 3.60 per cent.
While inflation has fallen substantially since its peak in 2022, it has picked up more
recently. The Board’s judgement is that some of the recent increase in underlying
was due to temporary factors and there is uncertainty about how much signal to take from
monthly CPI data given it is a new data series. Nevertheless, the data do suggest some
of a more broadly based pick-up in inflation, part of which may be persistent and will
close monitoring.
Economic activity continues to recover. Growth in private demand has strengthened, driven
both consumption and investment. Activity and prices in the housing market are also
continuing to pick up. Financial conditions have eased since the beginning of the year,
credit is readily available to both households and businesses and the effects of earlier
interest rate reductions are yet to flow through fully to demand, prices and wages. On
other hand, money market interest rates and government bond yields have risen more
Various indicators suggest that labour market conditions remain a little tight. The
unemployment rate has risen gradually over the past year and employment growth has
However, measures of labour underutilisation remain at low rates, surveyed measures of
capacity utilisation are above their long-run average and business surveys and liaison
continue to suggest that a significant share of firms are experiencing difficulty
labour. Wages growth, as measured by the Wage Price Index, has eased from its peak but
broader measures of wages continue to show strong growth and growth in unit labour costs
remains high.
There are uncertainties about the outlook for domestic economic activity and inflation
the extent to which monetary policy remains restrictive. On the domestic side, the
in momentum has been stronger than anticipated, particularly in the private sector. If
continues, it is likely to add to capacity pressures. Uncertainty in the global economy
remains significant but so far there has been minimal impact on overall growth and trade
Australia’s major trading partners.
The recent data suggest the risks to inflation have tilted to the upside, but it will
little longer to assess the persistence of inflationary pressures. Private demand is
recovering. Labour market conditions still appear a little tight but further modest
is expected. The Board therefore judged that it was appropriate to remain cautious,
its view of the outlook as the data evolve.
The Board will be attentive to the data and the evolving assessment of the outlook and
to guide its decisions. In doing so, it will pay close attention to developments in the
global economy and financial markets, trends in domestic demand, and the outlook for
inflation and the labour market. The Board is focused on its mandate to deliver price
stability and full employment and will do what it considers necessary to achieve that
Today’s policy decision was unanimous.
More on the December 2025 monetary policy decision...
Media Conference
Governor Michele Bullock addresses the media after the monetary policy decision.
Media Conference
Monetary Policy Minutes
Minutes of the Reserve Bank Board meeting, published two weeks after the decision.
Monetary Policy Minutes