At its meeting this week, the Reserve Bank Board decided to leave the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 6.50 per cent.
The possibility of a further rise this year cannot be ruled out, however. Growing inflationary pressures due to a strong domestic economy and the ongoing global credit instability will be factors which the Bank will be watching carefully, Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens said last month.
Governor Stevens said that given the macroeconomic situation of the Australian economy thus far, some additional restraint would perhaps not be unwelcome.
"But just how much such restraint will occur as a result of a market tightening in credit conditions is not yet clear", Governor Stevens said.
"Assessments of how much is warranted could be affected by changes in the international environment as well as by developments in the domestic economy.
"These are matters the Board will need to grapple with over the period ahead", he concluded.