The Reserve Bank of Australia said it would continue to evaluate its bond-buying program in the light of economic and health conditions. The east coast of Australia is being blocked in turn to fight the novel coronavirus delta variant.
"if further bad news on health leads to a significant setback in the economic recovery, the committee will be prepared to take action," the RBA said in the minutes of its August meeting released on Tuesday.
Two weeks ago, the Reserve Bank of Australia issued an optimistic statement sticking to the proposed plan to reduce bond purchases and expected the economy to rebound quickly from the contraction caused by the epidemic this quarter. However, new cases in Sydney are still climbing, and Melbourne and Canberra have had to extend their blockades.
The RBA estimates that household spending will fall by about 15% during the blockade, and data from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia show that consumption is falling.
Australian households' willingness to spend on most goods declined year-on-year in July for the first time since the outbreak began, Australia's largest bank said in a statement on Tuesday.