Australia Raises Rates from 49-Year Low

Australia became the first G20 nation to raise interest rates on Tuesday when its central bank increased the official cash rate from 3 per cent to 3.25 per cent.

In raising rates from their 49-year low “emergency” rate, Glenn Stevens, governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, said economic conditions in Australia had been “stronger than expected”, while measures of confidence had recovered.

In August, Israel, a non-G-20 nation, became the first central bank in a developed economy to raise interest rates since the global financial crisis intensified last September.