Australia Raised Its Cash Rate to 4.85%. A U.S. Loan Did Not.

Australia’s central bank raised its benchmark cash rate by a quarter point on Tuesday, Nov. 3, to 4.85 percent, the highest level since November 2008. It was the fifth increase this year. Six board members voted for the hike and three voted to hold.

The cash rate is Australia’s policy rate. It can feed into variable-rate loans and new borrowing there if lenders follow it. CNBC’s report did not say existing fixed contracts were rewritten, and it announced no U.S. mortgage, card, or fuel-price change. September consumer prices rose 4.3 percent, up from 4 percent in August and the highest reading since March. The bank now expects inflation to stay elevated through much of 2027 and to return to its 2 to 3 percent target only in late 2027, three quarters later than it had forecast.

It blamed higher fuel and other commodity prices, plus AI-related investment that is lifting prices of technology goods. Australian GDP rose 2.1 percent in the June quarter from a year earlier, down from 2.5 percent in the March quarter. Governor Michele Bullock has said a recession is not the base case.

Could this hike raise a U.S. loan payment or fuel bill? No U.S. loan or fuel-price change was announced. The verified change is Australia’s 4.85 percent cash rate, with the bank citing fuel, commodities, and technology-goods prices.