Like Australia and Canada, New Zealand is experiencing a record post-pandemic immigration boom, with net overseas migration a hitting an all-time high 118,800 in the year to September: Independent economist Tony Alexander noted last month that this 2.3% boost to New Zealand’s population “means upward pressure on rents and house prices because these people need
This is how low things have sunk. MB gave Josh Frydenberg a fearful time as Treasurer for being irrepressibly inept. We coined him Josh “Recessionberg” because an ill-fated campaign to deliver a surplus for the 2019 election drove the economy into the ground, embedded deflation, and put politics ahead of sound economic management. But, in
US bank credit marginally improved last week: However it is still -1% year on year and has grown at all in 16 months: Standards are tight: It is starting to show with very high rates of interest landing hard on auto and credit card loans: As excess savings drain away: I still think we are
So says Westpac. ― The Westpac Card Tracker Index* posted a decent 4.5pt bounce in the week ended November 25, Black Friday sales generating a signifi cant lift in discretionary goods spend over and above the regular seasonal pattern. While this restores much of the apparent loss of momentum in October and early November, Black
Australia experienced its largest-ever increase in mortgage refinances over the last three years. In mid 2023, monthly mortgage refinances peaked at $21.5 billion, up from around $10 billion in mid-2020, as reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. However, the boom in mortgage refinancing has clearly come to an end, with the total volume of
Australia is experiencing a record influx of international students that is causing immense pressure on Australia’s rental market and infrastructure and is helping to drive inflation higher. The latest temporary visa data from the Department of Home Affairs showed that there were a record 672,800 student visas on issue in October 2023, representing an annual
The east coast gas price remains around $8Gj: This has crashed power costs again: Further aided by strong wind: Even sticky power futures have fallen below $85MWh: A break below $85MWh would be significant. The AER considers energy futures in its assessment of default market offers. The next draft assessment will be in March for
BNP isn’t sparing the forex horses. Fed reaction function shifts: Although a number of Fed speakers this week, including Governor Powell today, have tried to walk back dovish rhetoric from Governor Waller, we think the genie is out of the bottle, meaning: 1. the market is and could remain firmly convinced the next move is
Readers will know that MB is pretty disgusted with Australia’s fake Greens, but they do appear to be onto a good thing with their attack on Coles and Woolies: Australia’s big supermarkets will face fresh scrutiny with a Senate inquiry to investigate their market power and pricing decisions, amid concerns they have profiteered during an
Deloitte Access Economics has released its Employment Forecasts for 2024 and 2025, which tips anaemic jobs growth next year alongside a sharp rise in the nation’s unemployment rate. Specifically, Deloitte forecasts “national employment growth of just 0.5% (75,000 workers) in calendar year 2024, before gradually increasing to 1.3% (177,000 workers) in calendar year 2025”. In