Australia's second-quarter inflation data was very welcomed and came in as just the central bank expected, a top official said on Thursday, but added the bank remained cautious about the interest rate outlook.

Australia’s headline inflation rate in the second quarter of the year slipped to its lowest point since March 2021, coming in at 2.1% year over year, compared to 2.4% in the preceding period. This was lower than the 2.

Australia’s path toward interest rate relief became clearer after the latest trimmed mean annual inflation rate fell to 2.7%, its lowest level since December 2021, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.