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WFN QUICK BRIEF · UNDER 1 MIN
The short version
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The record
On 19 March 2020, the Reserve Bank of Australia announced a package including a cash-rate reduction to 0.25% and a target of 0.25% for the yield on three-year government bonds. A term funding facility and a change to interest paid on financial institutions’ RBA balances were also part of the response. RBA governor speech, 19 March 2020 ↗
WFN analysis
A currency briefing should identify the maturity being influenced. An overnight policy rate affects immediate funding conditions, while a target further along the curve can influence expectations and financing costs over a longer horizon. The exchange-rate channel may involve both.
Next check
For a historical event study, use the original announcement time and independently sourced bond and currency prices. Compare the short end and the three-year maturity separately. Do not describe these 2020 settings as current RBA policy, and do not apply a present-day yield series retrospectively without checking its definition.
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MARKET CONTEXTWFN EDITION · 14 OCTOBER 2026
Editorial noteSource-based explanation with original WFN analysis. Historical records retain their dates. Original WFN editorial diagram; it is not a live market chart.
WFN REALITY LEDGER
What is on the record?
Primary-source analysis
Dated official record / historical or technical explainer
The cited record establishes the documented event. Proposals, technical announcements, allegations and orders retain their stated status; WFN Analysis is editorial interpretation.
The RBA paired a 0.25% cash rate with a three-year bond-yield target in March 2020. These instruments worked at different maturities.
01 · VERIFIED RECORD
The verified record
On 19 March 2020, the Reserve Bank of Australia announced a package including a cash-rate reduction to 0.25% and a target of 0.25% for the yield on three-year government bonds. A term funding facility and a change to interest paid on financial institutions’ RBA balances were also part of the response. RBA governor speech, 19 March 2020 ↗
The matching percentages did not make the cash rate and the bond yield interchangeable. The announcement addressed separate points in the funding system.
02 · WFN EDITORIAL ANALYSIS
Why it matters
A currency briefing should identify the maturity being influenced. An overnight policy rate affects immediate funding conditions, while a target further along the curve can influence expectations and financing costs over a longer horizon. The exchange-rate channel may involve both.
The package also illustrates why a policy announcement cannot be reduced to one number. Even if the headline cash-rate change is anticipated, another instrument can alter the information investors receive. That is a possible transmission mechanism, rather than evidence that a particular AUD move was caused by the announcement.
03 · WHAT TO CHECK NEXT
What to check next
For a historical event study, use the original announcement time and independently sourced bond and currency prices. Compare the short end and the three-year maturity separately. Do not describe these 2020 settings as current RBA policy, and do not apply a present-day yield series retrospectively without checking its definition.
