CONVEX
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▍ STATISTICAL PROJECTION · YEAR-END 2026

Based on current macro regime conditions and australia cash rate target's historical behaviour in similar regimes, the model projects 3.93% by 2026-12-31 ( -0.7% from 3.96% today). The 68% confidence range is 1.90% to 5.97%; the wider 95% range is -0.06% to 7.92%. Methodology below the headline.

Central Estimate
3.93%
-0.7% vs current 3.96%
68% Range (±1σ)
1.90% to 5.97%
95% Range (±1.96σ)
-0.06% to 7.92%
Central estimate uses the unconditional 25-year historical average because current regime buckets had insufficient observations to produce a reliable blend.
METHOD: CENTRAL = SAMPLE-WEIGHTED MEAN OF PER-ANCHOR CURRENT-REGIME 1Y AVERAGES, SCALED TO 190-DAY HORIZON. BAND = ±σ√T USING 59.2% ANNUALIZED REALIZED VOL.
EXPECTED TO BE 3.93% BY 2026-12-31 (LOWER FROM 3.96% ON 2026-03-31). NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.
▍ MODEL · STATISTICAL FORECAST · 2026

Australia Cash Rate Target Forecast 2026

Quantitative analysis from 299 observations of Australia Cash Rate Target history, joined to four universal macro regime classifications. Numbers are computed, not narrated.

ByConvex Research Desk·Edited byBen Bleier·
RBA-CASH-RATE · LAST
3.96%
AS OF 2026-03-31
Percentile · 25Y History
51.8th

Performance by Window[02]

WINDOWNANN RETANN VOLRET/VOLHIT %TOTAL
1Y13-3.42%10.17%-0.3416.7%-3.41%
3Y363.32%8.59%0.3920.0%10.00%
5Y61108.73%120.32%0.9031.7%3860.00%
10Y1217.07%91.90%0.0815.8%98.00%
All299-0.93%59.20%-0.0216.8%-20.80%

Annualized total return = (1 + total)^(1/years) - 1. Ret/Vol is the annualized return divided by annualized volatility (Sharpe-equivalent without risk-free subtraction). Hit % = pct of single periods that were positive.

Where We Are Now[03]

Percentile Rank
51.8th
0.10median 3.757.25
Current value 3.9600 on a 299-observation history going back to Dec 31, 2020.
Volatility Regime
low
7.29%REALIZED 30D ANN
Sits at the 23.4th percentile vs full history. Median 11.01%.

Forward Returns by Macro Regime[04]

How Australia Cash Rate Target has performed historically conditional on the prevailing macro regime. The current bucket is highlighted; +1Y averages drive the headline signal above.

VIX
Volatility regime: Low (<15), Normal (15-25), Elevated (25-40), Extreme (>40)
CURRENT: 17.26 Normal (15-25)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Low (<15)64-0.17%-1.93%-5.20%0.00%42.9%
Normal (15-25)105-0.21%11.09%128.91%-5.00%37.0%
Elevated (25-40)366.74%42.75%211.67%5.56%54.3%
Extreme (>40)5-12.75%-27.11%-28.54%-26.32%20.0%
10Y-2Y Yield Curve
Yield curve regime: Inverted (<0bps), Flat (0-100bps), Steep (>100bps)
CURRENT: 0.50 Flat (0-100bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Inverted (<0bps)273.30%10.15%19.37%8.33%81.5%
Flat (0-100bps)761.42%31.81%224.81%0.00%31.9%
Steep (>100bps)107-0.53%-2.09%35.46%-4.65%37.4%
HY OAS Spread
Credit regime: Tight (<350bps), Normal (350-500bps), Stressed (>500bps)
CURRENT: 2.76 Tight (<350bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Tight (<350bps)41-0.17%30.80%483.86%-2.30%26.7%
Normal (350-500bps)655.54%45.90%201.29%0.00%31.3%
Stressed (>500bps)29-2.14%-3.75%-9.79%-25.00%10.3%
Trade-Weighted Dollar
Dollar regime: bottom/middle/top tercile of trailing 5Y rolling distribution
CURRENT: 118.04 Weak (bottom tercile)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Weak (bottom tercile)321.16%1.66%9.47%-4.92%37.5%
Neutral (middle)39-1.37%46.00%302.85%0.00%29.4%
Strong (top tercile)891.52%6.41%68.60%-11.11%21.8%

Forward returns are forward-looking from each historical observation in the bucket; +252d corresponds to one trading year. Buckets with fewer than 5 forward-return observations are reported as n/a. These are conditional historical averages, not forecasts.

Lead-Lag Relationships[05]

For each universally-recognised leading indicator, the lag at which the daily-return correlation peaks. Positive lag means the anchor leads Australia Cash Rate Target; negative means it lags.

ANCHORROLEPEAK LAGPEAK CORRZERO-LAGRELATIONSHIP
Initial Jobless ClaimsLabor leader+26d0.777-0.153leads target by 26d
HY OAS SpreadCredit risk leader+26d0.3690.100leads target by 26d
Baa-10Y SpreadCredit risk (slow)+26d0.3220.017leads target by 26d
10Y Treasury YieldDiscount-rate driver+2d0.2580.060coincident
10Y-2Y Yield SpreadRecession leader-31d0.236-0.074lags target by 31d
VIXVolatility leader+27d0.232-0.020leads target by 27d
Trade-Weighted DollarFX driver-35d-0.157-0.007lags target by 35d
CopperGlobal growth proxy-1d-0.124-0.055weak
NFCIFinancial conditions+15d-0.0750.008weak
U-Mich Consumer SentimentSurvey leader0d0.0000.000weak

Pearson correlation of daily returns over up to 25 years of overlapping history, searched across a ±60-day lag grid. Indicators classified as “weak” don't have meaningful predictive power at daily resolution; many of these (yield curve, NFCI, sentiment) lead at monthly/quarterly horizons instead.

Historical Analogs[06]

Periods where Australia Cash Rate Target sat at a similar percentile rank to today, with what happened over the next 30 / 90 / 252 trading days. Analogs are clustered to avoid double-counting nearby dates.

DATEVALUE+30D+90D+1Y
Feb 28, 20254.2500-3.53%-9.41%-9.88%
Oct 31, 20234.10004.63%6.10%6.10%
Jul 31, 20234.10000.00%4.63%6.10%
Apr 30, 20233.60006.39%13.89%20.83%
Dec 31, 20223.05001.64%18.03%42.62%

Worst Historical Drawdown[07]

-98.62%PEAK-TO-TROUGH
Peak Apr 30, 2008 → trough Dec 31, 2020. Has not yet recovered to prior peak.
All-time high: 7.2500 on Apr 30, 2008 · Current DD from ATH: -45.38%

Largest Single-Period Moves[09]

▲ Up
  • May 31, 2022230.00%
  • Jun 30, 2022121.21%
  • Jul 31, 202275.34%
  • Aug 31, 202241.41%
  • Sep 30, 202224.31%
▼ Down
  • Nov 30, 2020-56.00%
  • Mar 31, 2020-42.67%
  • Apr 30, 2020-41.86%
  • Oct 31, 2019-24.00%
  • Feb 28, 2009-21.18%

Calendar-Month Seasonality[10]

Average single-period return aggregated by the calendar month in which the period ended.

MONTHAVG RETURNHIT %N
January-0.11%12.0%25
February-0.67%12.0%25
March-1.00%20.0%25
April-1.64%16.7%24
May8.68%20.8%24
June4.18%20.0%25
July2.23%12.0%25
August0.90%12.0%25
September0.47%12.0%25
October-1.05%8.0%25
November-1.52%28.0%25
December-0.81%28.0%25

N = 299 OBS · GENERATED 2026-05-17 16:30Z

Forecast Approach

regime implied: The current macro regime classification (Goldilocks, Reflation, Stagflation, or Deflation) dictates the expected direction and magnitude of movement, calibrated against historical regime performance.

Key Drivers & Risks

  • Macro regime
  • Monetary policy
  • Risk appetite

Historical Volatility

Moderate

Frequently Asked Questions

What factors could push Australia Cash Rate Target higher?

The primary drivers that tend to lift Australia Cash Rate Target depend on the current macro regime. Asia Pacific macro diverges meaningfully from U.S. cycles. Japan's multi-decade disinflation, Korea's export-driven industrial cycle, and Australia's commodity-tilted economy each respond to different drivers. Monitoring the region alongside U.S. data reveals when a global story (the China credit cycle, the semiconductor cycle, global trade growth) is the real variable behind seemingly U.S.-centric moves. Convex tracks these drivers live across the Asia Pacific Rates category and flags when multiple forces align in the same direction. See the "Key Drivers & Risks" section on this page for the current list, and check the regime dashboard for how the macro backdrop is currently tilted.

What factors could push Australia Cash Rate Target lower?

The same transmission channels that drive Australia Cash Rate Target higher operate in reverse when conditions flip. The risk drivers listed above map directly to scenarios that, if triggered, would pull this metric in the opposite direction. Convex aggregates these into a scenario-weighted probability distribution rather than a point forecast, so the magnitude depends on which scenarios activate.

Where does consensus see Australia Cash Rate Target heading?

Rather than publish a point target that goes stale the day after release, Convex assembles consensus from the macro regime classification, active scenario probabilities, and historical base rates. Point forecasts from banks and strategists are worth reading for context, but they typically cluster around the consensus and miss the tail events that actually move markets. The scenario-weighted approach here captures that tail risk explicitly.

What is the historical range for Australia Cash Rate Target?

Historical ranges for Australia Cash Rate Target vary dramatically by regime. A level that is extreme in Goldilocks can be routine in Stagflation, and vice versa. The Historical Volatility section on this page describes the typical range and regime-specific behavior. For the full multi-decade history, visit the Australia Cash Rate Target chart page, which includes selectable time ranges up to five years and downloadable data.

How often is the Australia Cash Rate Target forecast updated?

This forecast page recalculates whenever the underlying data or regime classification changes, typically within hours of new data releases. The scenario probabilities refresh daily as the macro state is regenerated. Specific drivers listed on this page reflect the current state of the Convex regime engine, not static historical assumptions.

Is this forecast actionable for trading?

Convex forecasts are informational and educational. They describe probability distributions and regime-conditional paths rather than specific entry and exit levels. Traders and portfolio managers use them alongside other inputs including position sizing rules, risk management, and their own conviction calibration. They are not investment advice.

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Forecasts are model-based projections derived from current regime classification, scenario probabilities, and historical patterns. They are not investment advice. All investments involve risk.