{
  "id": 7920955,
  "title": "IMF says Australia may need further interest rate rises to tame inflation",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/imf-says-australia-may-need-further-interest-rate-rises-to-tame-7920955",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-17T01:24:39.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/business/2026/09/17/imf-says-australia-may-need-further-interest-rate-rises-to-tame-inflation"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that Australia's central bank, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), may need to raise interest rates further to combat persistent inflation. According to the IMF, inflation is expected to remain elevated this year before gradually decreasing towards the central bank's target range of 2% to 3%. While Australia is expected to experience slower economic growth over the next two years, household spending and business investment may prove to be more resilient than anticipated, keeping inflation levels elevated for a longer period. The IMF cautioned that rising global energy prices could further fuel inflation expectations, necessitating additional rate hikes by the RBA. Currently, markets predict an 87% probability that the RBA will increase the cash rate by 25 basis points when it meets at the end of the month, with the rate potentially reaching 4.85% by early 2027. In July, Australian consumer prices increased more than expected due to a surge in fuel costs, and core inflation also surpassed forecasts, heightening the risk of another interest rate hike.",
  "summary": "The global lender warns that further spikes in global energy prices could warrant additional tightening by the Reserve Bank of Australia.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "IMF says Australia may need further interest rate rises to tame inflation",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/imf-says-australia-may-need-further-interest-rate-rises-to-tame",
        "published": "2026-09-17T01:24:39.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}