Australian Economy Australian interest rates

Australians are caught in an interest rate pincer

Friday 25 September 2026

Much of the discussion around interest rates revolves around Australian households, who are facing another two to three interest rate hikes from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), which would take the official cash rate to 4.85% or 5.10% – the highest level since 2008.

Chart from Alex Joiner at IFM Investors

Such rises would come at a time when mortgage servicing costs are already tracking at their highest level since the early 1990s, when the official cash rate hit 17%:

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.