Australian households face prospect of interest rate hike and petrol prices rising above $2 a litre

Australian households are facing economic headwinds on two fronts. Crude oil has climbed back above one hundred dollars a barrel amid an escalating Middle East crisis, raising the prospect of petrol prices exceeding two dollars a litre. The Reserve Bank is seen by financial markets as having even odds of raising interest rates at its August eleventh meeting, which would be a fourth increase, The Guardian reports. Economists warn both pressures will likely squeeze household budgets in the coming weeks.

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