By Lucinda Jerogin, Associate Economist at CBA RBA appearances last week reinforced the cautious but hawkish leaning nature of the Monetary Policy Board. We continue to expect a 25bp rate hike in May to take the cash rate to 4.10%. The value of new housing loan commitments rose sharply in Q4 25 (+9.5%/qtr), driven higher
This week’s news that Sussan Ley has been rolled by Angus Taylor has largely been met by yawns. Who really cares? Nobody in their right mind thinks the Liberals are anywhere near being able to return as government. They are still redolent of the party in power, which did essentially nothing for three terms while
The latest interest rate hike from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has failed to dampen enthusiasm in the housing market. The final auction results from last week were solid, with 66% of the homes sold and February’s clearance rates rebounding from late last year: The momentum continued this weekend, despite a strong uplift in
For January, the Australian dollar was the key story. At an index level, Australian stocks rose 1.5%, but international stocks (largely due to the Australian dollar) fell 2.5%. Our funds were well-positioned for the change. Our core international fund bucked the trend to rise 1.9% for the month. Not holding as many US stocks helped,
International Reading: How Europe outsmarted US tariffs without escalating the conflict. – Cenrix Cuban Peso Hits Record Low as Life Grinds to a Halt, now trading at 500 peso per US dollar. – Hot Air Trump DOJ Launches Bunk Investigation Of Netflix Merger As a Favor To Larry Ellison – Tech Dirt The 45-year decline
There is a lot of paranoia about AI. And we should be worried about it taking jobs too quickly, worsening inequality and mental health effects. But you also need some perspective. Not everything AI-related is a cause for concern. Water is one. In my view, data centres using water are a local issue; their overall
The ‘Yes in My Backyard’ (YIMBY) movement has long argued that the solution to Australia’s crisis lies in upzoning our cities to permit high-rise apartments in more locations. YIMBYs often point to the Auckland Unitary Plan (AUP), implemented in 2016, which allowed the upzoning of approximately three-quarters of Auckland’s residential land area. The Grattan Institute
According to a recent analysis by social media creator statistics website Feed Spot, which breaks down the number of Only Fans Creators per country, the United States boasts the highest number with 1.1 million. This has led to quite a headline, with 1 in 315 Americans a creator on Only Fans. But when one starts
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday released monthly overseas arrivals and departures data for December, which continued to show strong growth in the number of people arriving and intending to stay in Australia for 12 months or more. In 2025, a net of 480,520 people arrived in Australia on a permanent or long-term
Charts from TME. Tech is in a spot of bother. Tech volatility is trending the wrong way. What is the problem? AI capex is insane. The market is now caught between concerns about the ROI of these hyperscalers and the impact that such capacity will have on all industries that can deploy AI apps. VIX