Investing.com-- The Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept interest rates steady as expected on Wednesday, but flagged a potential delay in interest rate cuts due to headwinds from sticky inflation.While the bank had marked an end to its rate hike cycle in mid-2023, it is now expected to keep rates high for longer, amid some signs of sticky inflation in the country.
But the reading still remained well above the RBNZ’s 1% to 3% annual target range- indicating that the bank was likely to keep rates at current levels to keep bringing down inflation.The RBNZ was among the first major central banks to begin hiking interest rates in response to an inflation spike following the COVID-19 pandemic. But its efforts to stymie inflation were in part offset by a series of devastating natural disasters, as well as robust labor market conditions.