Expert Exchange: The Kouk on Michelle Bullock’s legacy as RBA Governor

What will become Michelle Bullock’s legacy as the first female governor of the RBA? Three years into her term, Bullock is facing one of the most turbulent stretches in the RBA’s recent history. In this edition of Expert Exchange, HotCopper sat down with one of Australia’s top economic minds, Stephen Koukoulas, to unpack what her tenure has meant for everyday Australians, and what her final legacy might be.

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Bullock made history in September CY23 as the first woman to lead the RBA. Her term began with a run of rate cuts through CY25 that offered mortgage holders some breathing room. That relief proved short-lived: a Middle East oil shock and stubborn inflation forced the Board into three consecutive hikes through early to mid CY26, pushing the cash rate back to 4.35%, effectively wiping out every cut she’d delivered and returning rates to levels not seen since the previous cycle’s peak.

For borrowers, the swing has been brutal. In our Expert Exchange conversation, Koukoulas gives his frank assessment of how Bullock’s term stacks up against predecessor Philip Lowe, whether the rate cut reversal will define her long-term legacy, and what she needs to get right over the back half of her seven-year term to be remembered as a steady hand rather than a cautionary tale.

We discuss her wins, her mistakes and what Australians suffering through a cost of living crisis should be bracing for next. Koukoulas also offers his take on what he’d do differently if he was handed the reins of the Reserve Bank.

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