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Grant Robertson: It is 'pretty clear' that interest rates will rise

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Fri, 18 Jun 2021, 7:53AM
Finance Minister Grant Robertson. Photo / NZ Herald
Finance Minister Grant Robertson. Photo / NZ Herald

Grant Robertson: It is 'pretty clear' that interest rates will rise

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Fri, 18 Jun 2021, 7:53AM

Grant Robertson says everyone needs to come to terms with the reality that interest rates are going to rise.

Economists are now predicting a rise to the Official Cash Rate early next year.

It follows a higher-than-expected 1.6 percent rise in GDP in the first three months of the year -- and America's Federal Reserve warning of interest rates rises in the United States.

The Finance Minister says told Mike Hosking it's a matter of when -- not if -- the Reserve Bank raises the OCR.

“It’s pretty clear that over time interest rates will go up, and therefore people have to bear that in mind. Hopefully, the value of the assets is maintained but people always have to consider that.”

New Zealand's GDP figures are continuing to lag behind Australia.

But Grant Robertson says over the medium term, both countries are likely to track a similar path.

“Over that four year forecast New Zealand does slightly exceed Australia in that. The economies are going to go in fairly close step because we’ve taken a pretty similar approach in dealing with Covid.”

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