WELLINGTON, Nov 19 (Reuters) - New Zealand's main opposition party would seek to change a policy that sets the central bank's main role as controlling inflation through interest rate moves, saying it has a negative impact on the currency and exporters.
The comments from centre-left Labour Party leader Phil Goff on Thursday added momentum to New Zealand dollar's fall of around 1 percent to below $0.7400 on Thursday.
However, with an election not due until late 2011 and Labour trailing the ruling National Party by around 25 percentage points (see), analysts said the plans were unlikely to come to much.
'The opposition leader is experiencing very poor polling at the moment, hence his policy proposals have little or no chance of being enacted,' said Annette Beacher, a senior strategist at TD Securities.
Goff said the party would no longer back the 20-year old policy that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) should keep inflation within a target band, currently set at 1-3 percent, through the use of interest rates.
'We want policy that will keep our exchange rate as stable and competitive as possible,' he said in a speech to the main farmers' lobby group.
Goff did not give any details of alternative tools, although he reaffirmed Labour's support for the independence of the RBNZ.
The centre-right government of Prime Minister John Key, a former foreign exchange dealer, ended nine years of Labour rule late last year.
(Reporting by Mantik Kusjanto; Editing by Jonathan Standing)
((mantik.kusjanto@thomsonreuters.com; +64 4 471 4232;
Reuters Messaging: mantik.kusjanto.reuters.com@reuters.net Keywords: NEWZEALAND ECONOMY/RATES (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
The comments from centre-left Labour Party leader Phil Goff on Thursday added momentum to New Zealand dollar's fall of around 1 percent to below $0.7400 on Thursday.
However, with an election not due until late 2011 and Labour trailing the ruling National Party by around 25 percentage points (see), analysts said the plans were unlikely to come to much.
'The opposition leader is experiencing very poor polling at the moment, hence his policy proposals have little or no chance of being enacted,' said Annette Beacher, a senior strategist at TD Securities.
Goff said the party would no longer back the 20-year old policy that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) should keep inflation within a target band, currently set at 1-3 percent, through the use of interest rates.
'We want policy that will keep our exchange rate as stable and competitive as possible,' he said in a speech to the main farmers' lobby group.
Goff did not give any details of alternative tools, although he reaffirmed Labour's support for the independence of the RBNZ.
The centre-right government of Prime Minister John Key, a former foreign exchange dealer, ended nine years of Labour rule late last year.
(Reporting by Mantik Kusjanto; Editing by Jonathan Standing)
((mantik.kusjanto@thomsonreuters.com; +64 4 471 4232;
Reuters Messaging: mantik.kusjanto.reuters.com@reuters.net Keywords: NEWZEALAND ECONOMY/RATES (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.