New Zealand delays rate hike

Cautious move: A pedestrian at the deserted Mission Bay suburb of Auckland. The Pacific island’s decision to delay policy tightening underscored growing global concerns over the spread of the Delta variant. — Bloomberg

WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s central bank delayed raising rates yesterday as policymakers quickly shifted gears after the country was put into a snap Covid-19 lockdown over a handful of new cases, but the bank still expects a hike before year-end.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) held the official cash rate at a record low of 0.25% despite the economy running red-hot and a majority of analysts polled by Reuters last week expecting a hike.