Capital Economics analyst Marcel Tiliant noted that Australia’s above-target inflation rate may require the RBA to tighten policy further. For the 12 months ending January 2026, the revised average inflation rate edged up to 3.4%, up from the previous 3.3%. The key point is that the RBA’s forecasts already assume at least two 25-basis-point rate hikes, and even under such a scenario, inflation would only reach the upper end of the 2%-3% range by the end of the forecast period. Therefore, Tiliant believes that today’s inflation data still provides ample justification for the RBA to tighten policy further.