> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.notatechguy.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Former RBA board member Harper says another rate hike plausible - URL: https://www.notatechguy.com/former-rba-board-member-harper-says-another-rate-hike-plausible/ - Published: 2026-10-07T21:08:19.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-07T21:08:20.000Z - Description: Former RBA board member Ian Harper says another 2026 rate hike is plausible but not likely, weeks after the cash rate lifted to 4.60 per cent. - Author: Marcello Babbili - Tags: Property & Economy, RBA, Interest Rates, Inflation Ian Harper, who left the RBA's Monetary Policy Board in August, has called another rate hike this year "plausible" but not necessarily likely, ABC News reports [S¹](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-08/ian-harper-rba-board-interest-rate-meetings/107240002?ref=notatechguy.com). His comments land nine days after Governor Michele Bullock announced the Board's 29 September decision to lift the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.60 per cent, from 4.35 [P⁹](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2026/mc-gov-2026-09-29.html?ref=notatechguy.com). **My read:** Harper is the first former board member I've seen speaking publicly after the September hike, and his choice of "plausible" over "likely" tells you something. He sat through the meetings that built to this tightening cycle. He is not forecasting a hike. He is refusing to rule one out. For anyone with a variable mortgage, that distinction matters because it keeps the risk live without pricing it in. Harper's credentials carry weight. He chaired the Competition Policy Review and served on the Financial System Inquiry before joining the Monetary Policy Board, according to the RBA's own board page [P⁶](https://www.rba.gov.au/about-rba/boards/monetary-policy-board/ian-harper.html?ref=notatechguy.com). He was present at the August 2025 board meeting [P⁸](https://www.rba.gov.au/monetary-policy/rba-board-minutes/2025/2025-08-12.html?ref=notatechguy.com) and delivered an economic outlook speech at a CEDA event in Melbourne on 2 June 2026 [P⁷](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2026/sp-mpb-2026-06-02.html?ref=notatechguy.com). An RBA media release confirms his term ended on 31 August, with Governor Bullock thanking him for his contributions to monetary policy [P⁵](https://www.rba.gov.au/media-releases/2026/mr-26-20.html?ref=notatechguy.com). His departure on 31 August meant he was not in the room when the Board decided to hike on 29 September. The September hike, as we found when [the RBA flagged inflation risks may be materialising](https://www.notatechguy.com/rba-flags-inflation-risks-may-be-materialising-reports-say/), brought the cash rate to 4.60 per cent [P⁹](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2026/mc-gov-2026-09-29.html?ref=notatechguy.com). A higher cash rate flows through to variable mortgage rates within weeks, lifting repayments for existing borrowers and tightening the serviceability buffer, the stress-test margin banks add to your rate when assessing new loan applications. For mortgage brokers, Harper's comments are a reason to stress-test client scenarios above the current 4.60 per cent cash rate rather than treating September's hike as the final move. For first-home buyers already stretched by the latest increase, the possibility that another hike remains on the table complicates budgeting. For investors weighing fixed versus variable, the "plausible but not likely" framing keeps the case for locking in a rate alive. The RBA has not signalled any specific timing for a further increase. Harper's view is his own, not current board guidance [S¹](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-08/ian-harper-rba-board-interest-rate-meetings/107240002?ref=notatechguy.com). The ABC report on 8 October 2026 is the only source for his comments, syndicated across news aggregators but not independently corroborated \[S2, S3\]. What breaks next is the RBA's own response to the economic data Harper is reading. The next scheduled board meeting will test whether the board shares his reading or whether September's hike was the last move of this cycle. --- *Sources: [S1 — Former RBA board member says another rate hike 'plausible' this year](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-08/ian-harper-rba-board-interest-rate-meetings/107240002?ref=notatechguy.com) · [S2 — Former RBA board member says another interest rate hike this year plau](https://www.msn.com/en-au/money/markets/former-rba-board-member-says-another-interest-rate-hike-this-year-plausible/ar-AA2dLWp4?ocid=BingNewsVerp&ref=notatechguy.com) · [S3 — Former RBA board member says another rate hike 'plausible' this year -](https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMilwFBVV95cUxOWVRRNzJzT3h0UmtGbkNsZjZfRVhKSS0xWnE3bWswWW9aZzdXM1hSVHh1eGtuQ3BBR1V6TWRUQU5pakhqVVFoQTZtanF4Q0FZWDE3MzBBMFZZMHhlbllia1M3NVZuYnozZEJKNFZ0SjRiOHkzUVZiSWQ2ZUJPNFZhU3VDMmkzTFFyVG12dWhsdldDMHpnbUtv?oc=5&ref=notatechguy.com) · [P4 — Transcript of Question & Answer Session on 12 April 2023 | Speeches | ](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2023/sp-dg-2023-04-12.html?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P5 — Appointment to the Monetary Policy Board | Media Releases | RBA](https://www.rba.gov.au/media-releases/2026/mr-26-20.html?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P6 — Ian Harper AO - Non-executive Member – Monetary Policy Board | RBA](https://www.rba.gov.au/about-rba/boards/monetary-policy-board/ian-harper.html?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P7 — Economic Conditions and the Outlook | Speeches | RBA](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2026/sp-mpb-2026-06-02.html?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P8 — 12 August 2025 | Minutes of the Monetary Policy Board Meeting | RBA](https://www.rba.gov.au/monetary-policy/rba-board-minutes/2025/2025-08-12.html?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P9 — Media Conference: Monetary Policy Decision – 29 September 2026 | Speec](https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2026/mc-gov-2026-09-29.html?ref=notatechguy.com)* ## Related reading - [RBA flags inflation risks may be materialising, reports say](https://www.notatechguy.com/rba-flags-inflation-risks-may-be-materialising-reports-say/) — our property desk, 2026-09-22 --- *Written from 9 sourced items, 6 of them primary.*