The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board discussed methods of pumping more money into the economy amid growing concerns over trade tensions between China and the US, and fears of a local downturn.

The minutes of its July meeting reveal the board reviewed the use of "unconventional monetary policy measures" by other countries in response to the global financial crisis, suggesting it was preparing to implement quantitative easing measures if required.

The Reserve Bank of Australia has historically relied only on setting interest rates to stimulate or slow down the economy. Credit:AAP

The rare step could include purchasing government securities, providing longer-term funding to banks to support credit creation, purchasing private sector assets and foreign exchange intervention to stave off the threat of recession.

The RBA has historically relied only on setting interest rates to stimulate or slow down the economy and the minutes show it will consider cutting further from a record-low 1 per cent if the situation does not improve.