7 Jun 2011

OCR expected to stay unchanged

7:05 am on 7 June 2011

The Reserve Bank is expected to leave the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 2.5% at its next review on Thursday.

The tepid economic recovery and benign inflation has most economists betting the next rise in interest rates won't occur until December at the earliest.

The OCR was lowered to 2.5% on 10 March.

Deutsche Bank chief economist Darren Gibbs says that while economic activity is picking up, there are some risks that could derail the recovery, and others that could threaten price stability.

''The economy is in a better space than it was three or four months ago, but (the review) will highlight risks," he said.

Mr Gibbs thinks the OCR will be raised early next year.