The Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised its Official Cash Rate by 25 basis points to 2.75% on September 2, matching expectations and marking a second consecutive increase after the July restart of tightening. The RBNZ said persistent inflation risks require further removal of monetary stimulus, but stressed that future hikes are not predetermined and will depend on incoming data. Annual consumer-price inflation reached 4.1% in the June quarter, driven largely by higher fuel prices linked to conflict in the Middle East, although inflation excluding vehicle fuels fell to 2.9% and most underlying measures remained within the 1%–3% target band. The less hawkish guidance, compared with July’s indication that further increases appeared likely, pushed NZD/USD down about 0.6% to 0.586 and lowered New Zealand’s two-year government bond yield from about 3.68% to 3.61%. Market data in the older report showed the NZX 50 little changed near 13,778.87, while a later update reported the index rising 144 points, or 1.0%, to 13,931 as financials, utilities, consumer staples and communication-services stocks advanced. Capital Economics expects another fourth-quarter hike but sees the cash rate peaking at 3.25% in the first half of 2027, below market pricing near 3.75%.