Australian businesses settled their invoices within 44.1 days, on average, during the last quarter of 2015, according to the latest trade payments analysis by Dun & Bradstreet. This is just a modest improvement on the previous quarter's average of 45.1 days but is six days faster than the same period a year earlier. In commentary accompanying the release of their report, D&B credited the decision in December by the Board of the Reserve Bank of Australia to maintain official interest rates at 2.0 per cent for the seventh month in a row with boosting consumer sentiment and business confidence."The further fall in the payments times for the business sector shows that firms are not only cashed up, but confident about their financial position. The record low interest rates set by the RBA are freeing up cash flow and lowering borrowing costs and underpinning a strong performance for corporate Australia," said Stephen Koukoulas, economic advisor to Dun & Bradstreet.The fishing and agriculture industries were the only sectors to record payment times below 40 days. "As with previous years, businesses in the utilities sector paid their invoices at the slowest rate of 53.2 days - a marginal improvement on the previous quarter and around one day slower than the same period a year earlier," D&B said.