Australia holds rates steady at 4.75pc

SYDNEY: Australia kept official interest rates steady at 4.75 percent Tuesday, citing slower global growth due to Japan's March earthquake, European debt problems and surging commodity prices.

The Reserve Bank of Australia left the official cash rate unchanged for the seventh time since November -- the last time they were raised -- saying it now believed domestic growth was "unlikely to be as strong as earlier forecast."

Globally, the bank said headwinds had grown, with banking and sovereign debt problems in Europe stoking uncertainty and volatility.

"The supply-chain disruptions from the Japanese earthquake and the dampening effects of high commodity prices on income and spending in major countries have both contributed to the slowing," said RBA governor Glenn Stevens.

The Australian dollar fell to US$1.0677 after the widely expected announcement, from US$1.0701 shortly before.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011