Australia Q1 GDP slows to 0.3% as data centre imports drag on growth

, both below forecasts, as a surge in data centre and fuel imports wiped 0.8 percentage points from growth despite strong domestic demand. *** The miss versus the 0.5% consensus is modest in isolation but the composition is what matters for the RBA: domestic demand ran hot enough to keep the central bank on guard, even as the headline number disappointed. Three rate hikes already this year have not yet fully transmitted, and with the services PMI now in contraction and the Middle East conflict continuing to inflate fuel costs, the RBA's own forecast of 1.9% annual growth by Q2 and 1.3% by year-end looks increasingly credible. Swap markets pricing only 23 basis points of further tightening for the year suggests the hiking cycle is close to done, but a fourth move cannot be ruled out if domestic demand stays stubborn. This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.

• Swap markets pricing only 23 basis points of further tightening for the year suggests the hiking cycle is close to done, but a fourth move cannot be ruled out if domestic demand stays stubborn.
• This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.