Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr's shock resignation has created an unwelcome distraction, one economist says, and more information is needed from the Reserve Bank board about exactly what has gone on.
It was announced on Wednesday that Orr was stepping down.
Deputy governor Christian Hawkesby will take over in an acting position until 31 March.
Orr was first appointed in 2018, and reappointed March 2023. His second term was due to end in 2028.
From April 1, Finance Minister Nicola Willis will appoint a temporary governor for up to six months.
Infometrics chief executive Brad Olsen said such a sudden departure, with no explanation, had not happened before.
When former governor Don Brash resigned, effective immediately, to run for Parliament, he fronted media to explain.
He said there had been acknowledgement that there were challenges related to the Reserve Bank's funding agreement with the government - Willis had suggested recently that the Reserve Bank might need to trim its expectations and said its spending had gone beyond what she was comfortable with.
But Olsen said there were still "so many questions".
With the governor occupying such an important role in the economy, people expected more information, he said.
He said it seemed odd that the governor had decided it was the right time to leave, when up until very recently he had given no indication it was even a consideration.
"There must be 1000 much cleaner ways to go about whatever this is… it's a very large distraction."
But economists said the change at the top was unlikely to change the Reserve Bank's future official cash rate decisions.
The rate is set by the bank's monetary policy committee (MPC), which includes Orr and Hawkesby, as well as assistant governor Karen Silk, chief economist Paul Conway, and external members Professor Bob Buckle, Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai.
Gareth Kiernan, chief forecaster at Infometrics, said Hawkesby was likely to maintain a similar approach to monetary policy as Orr.
"He has been part of the MPC for several years so already has a working relationship with the other members of the committee, and has generally seemed to me to take a similar view on what the appropriate decision has been as Adrian."
Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold said the Reserve Bank had already charted a firm course for interest rates over the next few meetings.
"I think there will be a high hurdle for a different path - and in any case it's a committee rather than an individual decision.
"Beyond that it's unclear what the path for interest rates is. I suspect the data rather than the personalities will be the key drivers. "
Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub said policy making could be influenced by the persona of the governor during crisis periods but was generally technocratic.
"The board approach more recently implemented means that it is less prone to being swayed too much by one person. But we have to wait and see who is appointed next, as they and the new agreement with the Finance Minister could have a bigger role than the person."
