Westpac ups forecast for third round of RBA QE

By Sophia Rodrigues

Published On 26 Mar 2021 , 11:19 AM

Westpac has revised its forecast for RBA's Bond Purchase Program, now expecting the second A$100 billion bond-buying to be followed by a third A$100 billion program (up from A$50 billion previous expectation).

Westpac has maintained the forecast for fourth round of bond purchase at A$50 billion, chief economist Bill Evans wrote in a note.

Westpac expects the Fed's QE policy to be a very important signpost for the RBA.

"It is unlikely that the FED will have made sufficient progress towards its goals by October this year to warrant scaling back its asset purchases. Were the RBA to taper it will expose the AUD and signal to the market that it has begun tightening. Such a signal could expose the recovery to unnecessary pressure and cast doubt on the credibility of any forward guidance the RBA may be offering," the note said.

Evans discussed the possibility (not his central call) that the RBA could revert to a more flexible program from October by committing to an open ended monthly target of, say, A$20 billion, (in line with the current purchase pace).

 

LATEST SNIPPETS

RBA Lifts Cash Rate to 4.85%

The Reserve Bank of Australia raised the cash rate by 25bps to 4.85%, taking it to a new cycle peak and the highest r...

Published on : 03 Nov 2026 , 03:34 PM
After leaving OCR unchanged, RBNZ Governor says hike chance in Dec "high"

Remind me how many central banks have stated the odds of the next move in any direction is "high." (Excepti...

Published on : 30 Oct 2026 , 03:23 PM
RBNZ's hold surprises

Central banks have surprised with their monetary policy decisions.

But I have never been as surprised...

Published on : 28 Oct 2026 , 03:22 PM
RBNZ surprises with OCR on hold at 2.75%

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand left the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 2.75%, surprising almost everyone.

Published on : 28 Oct 2026 , 12:18 PM
RBA Lifts Cash Rate 25bps to 4.60%

The RBA raised the cash rate by 25bps to 4.60%, taking the total rate hike this year to 100bps.

The increas...

Published on : 29 Sep 2026 , 02:45 PM
Concerts in Australia and Demand in 2027

There will no doubt be stories about this in the months to come, but based on my understanding, 2027 is turning out t...

Published on : 23 Sep 2026 , 06:54 PM
Credit to Macquarie Uni Student

It was a question I was asked by a student at Macquarie University that led to a last-minute decision (I had prepped...

Published on : 23 Sep 2026 , 06:53 PM
Two Big Four Banks Forecasting RBA Sep Hike

Two of the four big banks are now forecasting RBA hike in September. Westpac moved today to September (was the last b...

Published on : 18 Sep 2026 , 06:51 PM
RBNZ Assistant Governor Silk to Leave in Dec

RBNZ's assistant governor Karen Silk to leave the bank in December.

The executive leadership team...

Published on : 16 Sep 2026 , 06:50 PM
Australia and Recession. Really?

Apparently one more RBA cash rate rise will tip Australia into recession, given weak sentiment and housing market dow...

Published on : 10 Sep 2026 , 06:48 PM