A poll of 37 of Australia's leading economists has found all expect the RBA to leave its key cash rate unchanged after its meeting on Tuesday.Follow the day's financial news and insights from our specialist business reporters on our live blog.Disclaimer: this blog is not intended as investment advice.Collapse all postsFilter PostsAll4Key Events1Market snapshot1Fri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:58amFri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:58amBuilding products maker James Hardie posts jump in first-quarter profitBy Daniel ZifferNotorious building products company James Hardie reported a 54% rise in its first-quarter profit on Friday, helped by a return to growth in its key North American fiber cement business as elevated distributor inventories from a year earlier normalized.The company reported adjusted net income of $209.3 million for the three months ended June 30, compared with $136.1 million a year ago. That beat LSEG-compiled analysts' average estimate of $178.3 million.All figures are in US dollars.Fri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:45amFri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:45amA poll of economists asked about the RBA's cash rate. All 37 responded the same wayBy Daniel ZifferA poll of economists expects the Reserve Bank of Australia to keep the key interest rate at 4.35% for the rest of the year.Reuters survey reports that the RBA will keep its policy rate unchanged on Tuesday and for the rest of 2026 as policymakers assess how hikes earlier this year are affecting the economy.Since February, the RBA has raised the cash rate by 75 basis points to 4.35%, fully reversing last year's easing to try and contain price pressures building even before the US-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil prices significantly higher.But inflation has eased as higher borrowing costs slow economic activity and oil prices fell sharply in June.Annual inflation, at 4.0% last quarter, remains well above the RBA's 2%-3% target range, but while the core measure rose to 3.6%, it was below both the central bank's and economists' expectations.Many economists say underlying price momentum is easing, giving policymakers reason to remain in wait-and-see mode.All 37 economists polled from July 31 to August 5 expected the RBA to leave its key rate unchanged at 4.35% on Tuesday."It looks like inflation, although it is high, is trending in the right direction. And there are signs of easing demand pressure in the economy," said Nick Stenner, head of Australia and New Zealand economics at Bank of America."With policy in restrictive territory I think they've got the evidence they need to be patient and just hold the cash rate for the time being."What about the end of the year?Three-quarters of economists, 27 of 36, forecast no change from 4.35% before end-December, compared to 64% expecting that last month. A 45% minority of economists ahead of June's meeting were expecting at least one hike.Australia's major banks, including ANZ, CBA, NAB and Westpac, expected the cash rate to have already peaked.But some economists warned inflation could prove harder to tame."Commodity prices are still quite high. This time there won't be any fuel excise cut in Australia, and we do expect businesses to pass on the cost to consumers given consumers are doing quite well," said My Bui, economist at AMP."I think there is still a very high chance of another hike in the third or fourth quarter."Fri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:32amFri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:32amMarket snapshotBy Daniel ZifferASX 200 futures: -0.05% to 9,190 pointsAustralian dollar: -0.07% to 70.02 US centsDow Jones: -0.9% to 53,885 pointsS&P 500: -0.2% to 7,709 pointsNasdaq: ,-0.06% to 26,348 pointsFTSE: -0.2% to 10,867 pointsEuroStoxx: +0.2% to 658 pointsSpot gold: -0.2% to $US4,239/ounceBrent crude: +4.8% to $US83.31/barrelIron ore: +1.5% to $US93.91/tonneBitcoin: -0.3% to $US64,396Prices current around 7:30am AEDT.Live updates on the major ASX indices:Key EventFri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:28amFri 7 Aug 2026 at 7:28amLet's get to itBy Daniel ZifferHello, I'm Daniel Ziffer from the ABC business team and I'll be taking you through the morning on our business, finance and economics blog.Overnight, Wall Street indices were down, although some were dips from record closes.The blue-chip Dow Jones, a basket of 30 mega-companies like Boeing and Visa, was down 0.9% to 53,885 points.The broader S&P 500, which covers 500 of the largest listed companies in the US, was down 0.2% to 7,709 points.The tech-heavy Nasdaq was -0.06% to 26,348 points.Our market is set to slip, with the ASX 200 futures index tipping a -0.05% slide, or 4 points, to 9,190 points.There's lots to get to, all of it news, analysis and information and none of it financial advice.Let’s get started!