Central banks maintained a hawkish tilt overnight, with the RBA delivering a 25bp rate hike to a 15-year high and the Fed's dot plot signalling at least one further move this year; the ECB also hiked recently to 2.50% while US 10-year Treasury yields held near multi-decade highs of 5.24% and the 30-year reached 5.56%. Geopolitical risk remained elevated as the US-Iran conflict kept oil markets volatile, with Brent easing sharply 9.3% to $95.49 but remaining historically elevated; US consumer confidence slumped to 81.9 from 88.6, adding a stagflationary undertone to an already cautious market backdrop. Cross-asset signals were mixed heading into Asia-Pacific opens: gold surged 1.1% to $4,214/oz as a safe-haven bid, copper gained 1.36%, and the VIX remained contained at 16.04, suggesting equity markets are not pricing acute stress despite the bond market repricing. For ASX investors, the RBA hike and elevated yields create a headwind for rate-sensitive sectors, but the gold and copper bid, China stimulus signals, and AI-driven tech momentum provide offsetting support — with today's domestic CPI print at 11:30 AEST the single most important data point for near-term RBA expectations.