Sarah Hunter appointed as RBA chief economist, assistant governor

The news: The shakeup of the Reserve Bank's leadership continues, with Treasury official Sarah Hunter to take the reins as chief economist and assistant governor of economics.

The numbers: Hunter will begin on 29 January 2024. The RBA's former head of economic analysis Marion Kohler has been acting in the role since July.

The context: Hunter's appointment comes less than two weeks after Bank of England veteran Andrew Hauser was appointed as the RBA's deputy governor. It is the second external appointment to the central bank's leadership, after Michele Bullock was promoted to replace outgoing governor Philip Lowe. Along with leadership changes, the RBA and Treasury have announced sweeping changes to how the central bank operates, including cutting the number of cash rate meetings from 11 to eight, holding post-meeting media conferences and conducting five-year reviews of the monetary policy framework with Treasury.