Mark Lister: How an early OCR hike could hit markets, mortgages and confidence

PremiumOpinionOpinion byMark ListerRotorua Daily Post·17 May, 2026 04:00 PM5 mins to readMark Lister is investment director at Craigs Investment Partners‌When we look back at how the local sharemarket has responded to OCR moves, it does better after cuts rather than hikes, writes Mark Lister. Photo / Dean PurcellThe Reserve Bank meets this month, and there’s an outside chance the Official Cash Rate (OCR) will rise by 0.25%.If there’s no move this month, the focus will shift to the July meeting, where markets see a 0.25% move as almost certain.

That would be the first hike in