Leith and I have both explored the extraordinary price of coffee in Australia, with causes as varied as the price of beans in Brazilian drought to local labour costs and draining income. Coffee is now a luxury item. And the cafepocalypse in full swing. I admit, we’re not losing much here. I have long criticised
The Market Ear with more. So little exuberance Positioning and sentiment remain muted across the board. Hedge fund leverage is at cycle lows, CTAs and systematics are neutral, and there’s over $7 trillion parked in money markets. With so little exuberance, it’s hard to get truly bearish from here. Let’s examine the latest positioning and
Except that it is very common! GPs in NSW will soon be able to diagnose and prescribe medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), under major changes that will slash appointment wait times and make it more affordable for children and adults to receive a diagnosis and treatment. The NSW Labor government will pay for GPs
Here comes the bear doves, via The AFR: Tim Toohey was the local chief economist at Goldman Sachs for more than a decade. Now at major money manager Yarra Capital, Toohey said he expected five quarter-point rate cuts, to 2.6%, by August next year. Toohey said he had two reasons for this unorthodox position. First,
Victoria has become an economic leech on the nation. In 2024-25, Victoria received a massive $3.8 billion boost in its GST, whereas Queensland lost $384 million and NSW lost $188 million. Victoria also received $411 million in additional grants from the Commonwealth in 2024-25. For 2025–2026, Victoria’s GST allocation was increased again by $3.7 billion,
According to Robert Gottliebsen, the architect of Australia’s compulsory superannuation system, former prime minister and treasurer Paul Keating, is said to be furious about current Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ plans to tax unrealised gains within superannuation for balances above $3 million. Back in the early 1990s, Keating and union leader Bill Kelty joined forces to implement
Deloitte Access Economics has released its Quarterly Employment Forecasts Report, which paints the picture of a job market propped up by record government spending. Deloitte notes that almost 390,000 Australians found jobs in the past year, with around two-thirds being full-time, “highlighting the labour market’s resilience”. However, “the overall strength of the labour market has
Chinese steel futures buckled yesterday, both long and flat. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to let this happened when you have already mooted the solution of passing the price weakness upstream to iron ore via steel output put cuts. Chinese growth prospects are hardly shotting the lights out, either. Morgan Stanley. Milder growth
I keep arguing that Australia’s transition to renewable energy will be incredibly expensive and drive up power bills. The reasons are straightforward. Renewable energy sources depend on weather conditions, which makes them intermittent and results in low load factors. As a result, renewables require backup hydrocarbon generation and loads of storage. They also need a lot
It is clear that the world wants to sell DXY. The problem is, there’s nothing else to buy. EUR might be it but its on the end of a tariff bashing. AUD follows EUR. Lead boots are growing wings. Gold, gold, gold! Metals picking up some DXY tailwind. Not miners. EM meh. Junk meh. Yields