
WELLINGTON (Reuters) - The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) said on Wednesday that its sectoral factor model of core inflation was 1.7 percent year on year in the first quarter.
The central bank's statement came after the country's statistics agency released figures showing the consumer price index rose 1.5 percent in the same quarter.
Both measures are closely watched by the RBNZ, which has a monetary policy goal of achieving 1 to 3 percent inflation.
(Reporting by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)