Sydney, Feb 24, 2026, 16:55 AEDT — Market closed
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA) shares ended little changed on Tuesday, finishing at A$178.50, about 0.02% below the prior close. The stock traded between A$177.13 and A$179.79. (Google)
CBA is a heavyweight on the Australian market and one of the cleaner ways investors express a view on local rates without wading into bond futures. With inflation due next, traders are trying to work out if the central bank’s recent shift was the start of a cycle or a bump.
A senior Reserve Bank of Australia official pushed back on the idea that monthly inflation data will quickly replace the bank’s preferred quarterly gauge. Michael Plumb, head of economic analysis at the RBA, said policymakers had “also been analysing underlying inflation measures constructed using the monthly data”, while keeping the quarterly trimmed-mean measure — which strips out extreme price moves — at the core of its inflation read. The RBA lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points (0.25 percentage point) this month to 3.85%. (Reuters)
The cash rate target is 3.85% and the next policy update is due on March 17, the RBA website shows. Governor Michele Bullock is scheduled for a public appearance on Wednesday night, as the market digests fresh inflation numbers and re-prices the March meeting. (Reserve Bank of Australia)
Valuation has become the awkward bit for bank bulls. Analysts at Macquarie and Morgan Stanley warned that the major banks are trading on average price-to-earnings ratios — the share price divided by annual earnings — of about 21 times, with CBA at around 27 times forecast FY26 earnings, Market Index reported. It said Morgan Stanley rated CBA and Westpac underweight on valuation grounds and preferred NAB; it also quoted Westpac describing conditions as “a more stable environment for margins,” though competition in mortgages and deposits remains a pressure point. (Market Index)
Company filings on Tuesday showed CBA became a substantial holder in mortgage broker AFG and ceased to be a substantial holder in Karoon Energy. The bank also lodged an Appendix 3Y outlining a change in director Julie Galbo’s interests. (Intelligent Investor)
But a quiet close does not mean a quiet week. If inflation runs hot, markets will likely lean harder into “higher for longer” rates, and high-multiple bank stocks tend to wear that first.
Investors get the next read on Wednesday, when the Australian Bureau of Statistics releases the January 2026 CPI at 11:30 a.m. AEDT — the near-term event that can reset pricing for bank stocks and the RBA’s March decision. (Australian Bureau of Statistics)
