According to foreign media reports, the Reserve Bank of Australia will almost certainly keep interest rates unchanged at a 12-year high of 4.35% for the seventh time in a row at its meeting on Tuesday, as the flexibility of the labor market and the stickiness of inflation (if it is weakening) force the central bank to maintain a higher interest rate stance for a longer period of time. Employment rose sharply in Australia in August, while the unemployment rate remained stable, contradicting the RBA's view that high interest rates are slowing labor demand. Inflation fell to a four-month low in July, but progress on other fronts such as housing costs and services inflation remained slow, mainly due to government energy subsidies. These factors will only strengthen the RBA's hawkish resolve. The Reserve Bank of Australia is also likely to stress that it seeks to maintain flexibility in the face of a slowing economy, weak consumer spending and confidence, and does not rule out any policy changes.