Leading independent economist Gerard Minack published the following chart illustrating the primary driver of Australia’s rental crisis: excessive population growth via immigration: After Australia’s international border was reopened in late 2021, net overseas migration surged, with just under 1.5 million net migrants arriving between Q4 2021 and Q2 2025. As a result, rental demand surged
The ABS released the December monthly spending indicator yesterday, and it came in weak at -0.4%. The quarterly rate was still high at 2.2%, and the annual rate was likewise 5%. Volumes were 0.9% for the quarter, so a solid contributor to GDP. The ABS attributed the downdraft to pull-forward from earlier sales, such as
I absolutely stand by the right of Australians to protest. But why do it about Palestine? Australian of the Year Grace Tame condemned Herzog’s visit, earlier telling the crowd Australia was “a so-called democracy that punishes peaceful protesters like us, but welcomes a war criminal with open arms”. “A man … who said, and I
A few more days of this, and we’ll be getting rate cuts, not hikes. DXY cratered overnight as a new government shutdown, this time over ICE constraints, looms. The Australian dollar went berserk with CNY and JPY relief post-election. Oil and gold did not waste the day. AI mentals were a little less hysterical. Gapping
With the release of the latest Newspoll, One Nation’s rise in the world of Australian federal politics has been emphatically confirmed, putting to bed any ideas that this was a temporary boost due to polling seasonality or the immediate aftermath of the Bondi terrorist attack. According to Newspoll, One Nation is now polling a primary
The Albanese government’s Housing Accord target of building 1.2 million homes over five years has fallen well behind. The Housing Accord commenced on 1 July 2024 and requires the construction of 240,000 homes over five years to meet the target. As of the September quarter of 2025, only 219,000 dwellings had completed construction, 27% fewer
The Crime Statistics Agency’s 2024-25 crime statistics revealed that Victoria saw a record high of 483,000 criminal incidents over the financial year. Victoria Police also reported that just 5,400 repeat offenders accounted for 40% of the state’s total crime. Car theft is one area where crime has surged in Victoria. In 2024-25, the number of
I have not posted about our old mate Drew Pavlou for three years, but he has earned another mention. Having first come to fame fighting the CCP’s quiet invasion of our universities in 2019, Mr Pavlou has morphed into a consistent protest presence attacking the fake left. Roughly a year ago, this morphed into a
Last week, following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to lift the official cash rate (OCR) by 0.25%, Treasurer Jim Chalmers claimed that excessive private sector demand was behind Australia’s high inflation. In a media release directly following the RBA’s decision, Treasurer Chalmers said “the Board’s statement today does not mention government spending. It
Charts from TME. There are a lot of wild moves closing out the week. JPM gross hammered. Huge shorts. Social media sentiment collapsed. Volatility spiked. However, instos are still all-in with no cash. Equities, equities, equities! Leverage is virtually unchanged. While Michael Hartnett’s risk monitor remains in extreme sell. Where there has been progress under