The weather vane of financial market interest rate forecasts has swung hawkish following stronger-than-expected CPI inflation prints. As illustrated below by Justin Fabo from Antipodean Macro, financial markets are now pricing a potential 25 bp hike in the cash rate in 2026: The Melbourne Institute’s trimmed mean inflation gauge, which rose solidly again in November,
It was MB that led APRA to adopt macroprudential tools designed to lean against the cycle and aid monetary policy. Alas, like everything else in the Australian political economy these days, APRA’s latest round of macroprudential tightening is purely performative, or fake, achieving the opposite. Back in the 2015 lending bubble, MB forced AHPRA to
The Market Ear kicks us off. Welcome weekend CTAs swing wildly, risk appetite collapses, tech suffers its largest outflows in 4 years, and AI finally shows up in real earnings. Here are the 10 charts we’re watching this weekend — from market panic to full-stack AI dominance. 1 – CTAs What is the next CTA
Statistics New Zealand released its filled jobs survey on Friday, which revealed that October filled jobs were unchanged. However, as illustrated below by Justin Fabo from Antipodean Macro, the October data incorporated downward historical revisions, with the level of employment in September around 0.2% lower. As a result, hiring was a mere 0.1% higher in
China isn’t growing. Just ask the PMIs. Manufacturing. Services. Combined. This economy is pancaked as its property sector implodes. China uses various tricks to exaggerate GDP: focusing on the supply side, failing to write down investments, and underestimating the GDP deflator. All of these overestimate growth that is not there. Now it is going to
The latest ABS Labour Force survey painted a deeply mixed picture of the job market. On the one hand, this single print presented a compelling picture: a substantial increase of 42,200 new jobs, all full-time in net terms, and a robust growth in hours worked. However, a longer view reveals a decidedly more challenging picture. As
The ferrous complex remains paralysed by iron ore prices that are too high for steel profits. But we are in some equilibrium, as steel demand and supply are locked together. Modestly reduced steel supply has been drawing down inventory. While lifting iron ore inventory at ports. Something needs to change to rebalance. Either the government
The Australian National University (ANU) is one of the nation’s key purveyors of immigration propaganda. Propagandists like “Dr Demography” Liz Allen are regular mouthpieces on the pro-Big Australia migration circuit, as are the ANU Migration Hub’s Peter McDonald and Alan Gamlen. When Australia’s net overseas migration hit 530,000 in the year to December 2023, the
I long for a competent opposition. The Albanese government has sabotaged energy policy to such an extent that it is a miracle it remains in power. Check out some examples today. Cathy King is the owner of hairdressing business Toni&Guy, which has 22 salons across Sydney. Ms King, who manages three salons, says her electricity
Last week, the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) released its new prudential standard, effective February 2026, which caps high-risk mortgages (debt-to-income ratio over 6x) at 20% of new lending. APRA’s announcement aims to manage housing vulnerabilities preemptively amid rising prices but excludes new housing builds and applies portfolio-wide, allowing banks flexibility while aligning with government goals