Reserve Bank Governor to appear before House Economics Committee

THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics will hold a public hearing with the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Dr Philip Lowe, on Wednesday, December 2, 2020.

The RBA last appeared before the committee in August 2020.

At its meeting on November 3, the RBA Board announced a package of further measures to support the Australian economy as it recovers from COVID-19.

The moves comprise:

• a reduction in the cash rate target, the three-year yield target, and the interest rate on new drawings under the Term Funding Facility to 10 basis points, from the current 25 basis points;
• a reduction in the interest rate on Exchange Settlement balances to zero from the current 10 basis points; and
• committing to the purchase of $100 billion of government bonds over the next six months.

Committee Chair, Tim Wilson MP, said, "The committee will be scrutinising the RBA’s measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the move to implement quantitative easing, and how these measures will help the Australian economy recover after a very difficult year.

"We will also be scrutinising the RBA’s recent decision to start work on a digital currency, as well as zoning and planning regulation that is contribution to house price inflation."

Public hearing details

Date: Wednesday, 2 December 2020
Time: 10am to 12pm
Location: Main Committee Room, Parliament House, Canberra

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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