Active management needed from RBA
(25 January 2013 – Australia) The economy requires "active management" to tide over the mining sector slow down and the effect of the strong Australian dollar, according to Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board member Heather Ridout.
Ridout recently retired as chief executive of the Australian Industry Group (AIG) and told reporters that in the face of 'persistent' challenges to the economy, Australia 'can't just sit back and wait for growth to be put in our lap."
She said growth in the non-mining sectors of Australia was 'very tough with the dollar remaining so persistently high'.
'You're seeing reasonably positive results out of China. But the big challenge for us is to be able to achieve a diversified growth model and that's the big challenge for economic policy over the next 12 months.'
On Wednesday, data from the Bureau of Statistics showed that the consumer price index, a measure of prices paid by consumers for commonly bought items, rose 0.2 percent for the quarter and 2.2 percent for the year, at the lower end of the RBA’s annual target band, and slightly below economists' expectations.
She said growth in the non-mining sectors of Australia was 'very tough with the dollar remaining so persistently high'.
'You're seeing reasonably positive results out of China. But the big challenge for us is to be able to achieve a diversified growth model and that's the big challenge for economic policy over the next 12 months.'
On Wednesday, data from the Bureau of Statistics showed that the consumer price index, a measure of prices paid by consumers for commonly bought items, rose 0.2 percent for the quarter and 2.2 percent for the year, at the lower end of the RBA’s annual target band, and slightly below economists' expectations.
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