Independent economist Chris Richardson published the following chart on Twitter (X) showing that Australia has experienced one of the poorest increases in living standards over the past decade among advanced OECD nations. “The good news is that Australia’s average has improved since my last update”, Richardson wrote. “The bad news is we still have a
By Lucinda Jerogin, Associate Economist at CBA It was a relatively quiet week locally. Consumer sentiment lifted to a 3½ year high, providing further evidence the household consumption recovery is gaining momentum. The Economic Reform Roundtable was held in Canberra from Tuesday to Thursday. Offshore, geopolitical events dominated headlines. Russia-Ukraine ceasefire talks tookcentre stage, but no
The latest Westpac consumer sentiment survey showed that Australians have become bullish on house prices. House price expectations hit a cyclical high, whereas the ‘time to buy a dwelling’ sub-index also shot higher. The improving sentiment has also been reflected in the auction market, where the national clearance rate has climbed to its highest level
In the wake of the Economic Reform Roundtable Gunnamatta and Deep T discuss the submission made by Deep T to the event. Recorded last weekend (prior to the meet) the discussion ranges over the financialisation of Australian housing, from the way rising prices of houses mean that the banking system doesnt need to raise
International Reading: Sony Hikes PlayStation 5 Price To Cover Tariffs And Gamers Are Furious: ‘Trump Is 100% To Blame’ – Fortune Texas hit by another round of layoffs across tech industry – Chron Americans can afford only 28% of homes on the market – News Week Elon Musk Just Won His War on Labor Unions
Asian share markets are generally doing better although local shares are falling back on probable profit taking as other risk markets sentiment remains neutral going into tonight’s Jackson Hole conference. The USD is pushing slightly higher against the majors with Euro breaking below the 1.16 handle while the Australian dollar remains very weak at its
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand cut the official cash rate (OCR) by 25bp to 3.0%, a decision widely expected by economists and markets. This meant that the OCR has fallen by 2.5% from its 5.5% peak in mid-2024. The above OCR track published by the Reserve Bank is projected to end the year at
Platitude one. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has opened the door for an assault on superannuation concessions and other wealth taxes in exchange for lower income tax, by declaring intergenerational equity will drive reforms that could be taken to the next election or implemented beforehand. Wrapping up the three-day Economic Reform Roundtable on Thursday, Chalmers said while there was no clear
James Campbell from the Daily Telegraph reported on the explosion in bogus asylum seekers under the Albanese government: When Labor came to office, there were roughly 68,000 people who had been told they must leave who were still here. By the end of July, this number had reached 98,979, which without a doubt will be
I am philosophically opposed to using scarce taxpayer funds to subsidise private car purchases. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are heavily subsidised in Australia. Every year, the federal government loses more than $500 million in tax income due to the Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption for BEVs, a figure that will rise as the number of