Yes, you read that right; the Australian gas price continues to crash. Electricity demand is down sharply year on year, which accounts for some of it. With gas prices crashing, power prices are flatlined. However, the Asian price for gas is still about $22Gj, so there is a lot more going on than favourable weather.
The wage price index for the December quarter from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported that real inflation-adjusted wages fell by around 0.3% in 2025 and were tracking 6% below their Covid-19 ‘bubble’ peak at around late 2011 levels: The Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) forecasts, as laid out in its February Statement of
Yesterday, ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence dropped 3.7 points to 73.4 points. At 77.0 points, the four-week moving average decreased by 0.9 points. The four-week moving average increased by 0.3 percentage points to 5.5%, while “weekly inflation expectations” increased by 0.8 percentage points to 6.1%. The last year’s “current financial conditions” dropped by 1.2 points, while the
Independent senator David Pocock used a February Senate estimates hearing to highlight how lightly Australia taxes offshore gas, pointing out that beer excise now raises more revenue than the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT). Pocock asked Treasury officials whether it was “accurate to say that the tax on offshore gas exports — PRRT — is
The ferrous complex continues to trade far above fundamentals amid oil disruptions. Chinese trade was out and sent a clarion signal that there is trouble ahead. Iron ore imports front-ran the year at a record 120mt in January, then cratered in February to 95mt. The two months combined were up 8%, but this looks more
According to BCA Research, the United States’ main goal in Iran is more constrained than that of Israel: reducing Iran’s capacity to pose a threat to the area, rather than overthrowing the Iranian government. The US specifically wants to undermine Iran’s navy, dismantle its nuclear and ballistic missile program, and stop supporting regional extremist organisations.
Recently on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) there was a table detailing population growth for various developed economies since 2000, based on the numbers from the OECD database. Of the nations assessed, Canada had the strongest relative population growth between 2000 and 2024, expanding by 34.6%. This got me thinking: where would
Australia’s rental crisis continues to worsen as population growth driven by immigration exceeds supply. According to Cotality, nationally advertised rents have soared by 47% since the end of 2019, adding nearly $11,500 to the annual cost of renting for the median tenant: Rental affordability in Australia is now tracking at an all-time low, with the
The Australian Greens have promised to waive through various tax reforms impacting superannuation and property investment, in a bid to boost budget revenue and improve equity. After months of pushing for amendments, the Greens have agreed to pass the extra 15% tax on earnings from super balances above $3 million without changes (i.e., Division 296).
Victoria’s 2025‑26 Mid‑Year Financial Report was released on Friday and showed that the state’s net debt has increased by $10 billion in six months, reaching $160.9 billion: Net debt as a share of the state economy has risen from 23.7% to 24.2% in six months. Interest costs are also escalating. $3.8 billion was spent on interest