The Australian Reserve Bank announced personnel changes, and it is expected that policy continuity will be maintained amid expectations of a rate hike.

Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has appointed Bruce Preston to the Reserve Bank of Australia's interest rate-setting committee, replacing Alison Watkins, whose term has expired. Preston, currently an economics professor at the University of New South Wales, previously served as a senior advisor to both the Reserve Bank and the Treasury. Frydenberg stated in a statement on Friday that Preston's five-year term will begin on March 1. With increased uncertainty in the current economic outlook, this personnel change has garnered much attention. This appointment comes at a crucial time for the Reserve Bank of Australia, as it has become the first major central bank to raise interest rates this year due to persistent strong inflation.