Girls rate in bank final

Napier Girls' High School has qualified for the national final of its 2015 Monetary Policy Challenge (MPC). Photo / Duncan Brown

Budding bankers from Napier Girls' High School are through to the Monetary Policy Challenge national final.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand today announced that Napier Girls' High School has qualified for the national final of its 2015 Monetary Policy Challenge (MPC).

The MPC gives secondary school students the opportunity to put themselves in the shoes of Reserve Bank economists and recommend what the Official Cash Rate could be.

This year the competition was partly run online and the year 12 and 13 students presented their monetary policy decision via video conference.

The students' presentations largely focused on current key factors influencing the economy such as dairy prices, housing market activity, and low inflation.

The judges praised the school for the high standard of its online presentation.

"The team had a great understanding of economic theory, which was applied to current real world topics that are affecting inflation. We were really impressed with the range of issues that were discussed in a well-structured and concise manner," the judges said.

The other national finalists are from Diocesan School, King's College and Macleans College in Auckland, Taupo-nui-a-Tia College and Waikato Diocesan School.

The MPC is designed to expand senior high school economics students' understanding of monetary policy and links to NCEA achievement standards.

The national final will be held in Wellington on Wednesday, August 12. Teams will need to deliver a 10-minute presentation and take part in a 20-minute question and answer session with the judges.

The winning team will receive $2500 for their school and each student in the winning team will also receive prizes worth $500, as well as spend a day at the Reserve Bank on September 10.