Australian Economy Australian interest rates

Australia’s inflation is getting worse, despite rate hikes

Leith van Onselen

Thursday 29 October 2026

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has hiked the official cash rate four times this year to a 15-year high of 4.60%.

As a result, Australia now has the second-highest official policy rate in the advanced world, behind Iceland.

Despite the RBA’s aggressive rate hikes, Australia’s inflation problem continues to worsen.

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.