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A Lowe Blow

A homeless man pushing a cart says to his dog, 'Don't worry... the Reserve Bank governor says if we cut back on our spending and find some additional hours of work, we can get back into a positive cash flow position!'

On 7 June 2023 RBA Governor Philip Lowe defended a 12th almost-consecutive rate increase. John ‘Polly’ Farmer closely paraphrases Lowe’s response when asked how much further he thought interest rates could rise ‘before we see a serious rise in mortgage arrears, forced sales and defaults’, and puts it into a real-life context. Lowe’s suggestion that people could cut down on spending or work more hours was widely seen as insensitive and out of touch.