New Zealand finance minister would like RBNZ to return to eight meetings a year

[WELLINGTON] New Zealand’s Finance Minister Nicola Willis said on Tuesday that she would like New Zealand’s central bank monetary policy committee to meet more frequently raising concern about lengthy gap between meetings in summer.

“Ultimately, the decision about how often the Monetary Policy Committee meets is a matter for the Reserve Bank, but my view is that the committee should meet more often,” Willis said in a statement.

“I think the Reserve Bank should return to meeting eight times a year,” she added, in comments first reported by Bloomberg.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand cut the number of its policy meetings to seven from eight in 2016, which has allowed policymakers to enjoy a nearly three-month year-end break.

“I’m particularly concerned about the 12-week break over summer, which is a long time to go between meetings. The central banks of England, Canada, Australia and the United States have shorter breaks and meet more frequently,” she said.

At the end of last year, some economists argued that the central bank was under greater pressure to ease policy aggressively because they would not get another chance for three months and needed the extra insurance against an economic slump.

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Willis said she had sought advice from the Treasury about the frequency of meetings. REUTERS