Australia's central bank, no longer 'patient', opens door to tightening

SYDNEY: Australia's central bank on Tuesday opened the door to the first interest rate increase in more than a decade as it dropped a previous pledge to be "patient" on policy, a major surprise that sent the local dollar to nine-month highs.

Wrapping up its April policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) kept its cash rate at 0.1% but noted inflation had picked up and was likely to rise further, while unemployment had fallen faster than expected to 4.0%.