Between 2018 and 2026, Australia’s monetary policy shifted from prolonged accommodation to tightening and back toward easing. The policy rate rose sharply from 2022, peaking at **** percent between late 2023 and early 2025, before being cut three times in 2025 to *** percent. As of March 2026, the policy rate has risen again to *** percent. Inflation peaked at *** percent in December 2022 and generally trended downward thereafter, despite intermittent increases, reaching *** percent in March 2026.