ASB Bank wants to raise up to $400 million in a fixed interest offer that it intends to list on the New Zealand share market.

Kiwibank has announced it will lift its home loan rates in response to yesterday's Reserve Bank decision to increase the Official Cash Rate.

Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler has signalled an aggressive, front-loaded start to the interest rate cycle now under way.

The New Zealand dollar jumped to a five-month high after the Reserve Bank raised the benchmark interest rate as expected and signalled further hikes are on the way.

The Kiwi dollar will stay at an elevated level for longer than previously thought as the local economic story finds favour with foreign investors.

Fran O'Sullivan asks: "Will all the chess pieces be in place within the next week in time for China to announce full convertibility of the NZ dollar into the renminbi during the PM's visit?"

About 70 per cent of businesses surveyed by ASB Bank expect the New Zealand dollar to reach parity with the Aussie dollar over the coming year.

NZIER's shadow board is emphatically in favour of an increase in the official cash rate tomorrow.

A rise in the official cash rate from 2.5 to 2.75 per cent on Thursday is seen as a virtual certainty, so the focus will be on the Reserve Bank's economic forecasts.

Kiwibank has given an assurance it won't discriminate against customers who take part in a class-action lawsuit over allegedly "unfair" penalty fees.

The New Zealand dollar advanced as investors gained confidence that tensions in Ukraine were easing, stoking demand for risk-sensitive assets.

Savers should expect to feel some relief from next week with economists predicting short-term deposit rates to head up in line with a predicted increase in the official cash rate.

Reserve Bank restrictions on home lending have "changed the game" for New Zealand's banks and created unintended consequences, says a new report.

Interest rates are likely to rise - so what should you do with your home loan?