The strength of Australia’s labour market was the biggest factor working against an interest rate cut at Tuesday’s Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) monetary policy meeting. It was also the biggest upside risk highlighted in the RBA’s statement on the decision. On Wednesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the Q4 2024 wage price
As Westpac illustrates, the RBA’s wage fgrowth outlook is ridiculous. In the December quarter, the Wage Price Index (WPI) rose 0.7% which at three decimal places was just 0.654%, a whisker off rounding down to 0.6%. This result is going to make it much harder for the RBA to achieve their June 2025 forecast of
In late 2023, ABC Fact Check caught Treasurer Jim Chalmers “misleading” about the growth in Australian full-time earnings. In August 2024 and November 2024, Treasurer Chalmers was again caught misleading voters about Australian wages. On Wednesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the wage price index for Q4 2024, which showed that wages grew
The Australian Population Research Institute (TAPRI) has released its latest survey on voter attitudes, which shows that the overwhelming majority do not support recent high levels of immigration or a Big Australia. Only 11% of the electorate support the current high migration settings. The question on immigration began with this preamble: Since Australia’s borders were
DXY is up again as King Trump romps hither and thither. AUD eased. Lead boots ahoy! Commods yawn. Miners smashed. EM pause. Junk hope. Yields stall. Stocks ATH. The court of King Trump is a circus. President Donald Trump issued his most direct threat yet to Volodymyr Zelenskiy, saying the Ukrainian president had “better move
Overnight saw the release of the latest FOMC minutes with Wall Street pushing up higher against the trend as European shares finally fell back after weeks of trending higher. The USD continues to make a comeback against the major undollars with Euro slipping although Yen is firming once more. Meanwhile the Australian dollar is holding
The RBA is a paid propagandist for the immigration-led, labour market expansion economic model. This means it must lie about the wage-suppressing effects of immigration or voters will demand the model (some might say scam) is shut down. But even the best liar occasionally lets slip the truth, and yesterday’s SoMP is a great example.
In the 2023-24 financial year, a record 3,000 construction firms in Australia were declared bankrupt (insolvent). New data from ASIC suggests that construction insolvencies have worsened in 2024-25. In the first seven months of this financial year, 1,999 construction firms were declared insolvent. This was 26% higher than the same period in 2023-24 (1,583) and
Most Asian share markets are trading higher despite the lack of a solid lead from Wall Street overnight with the USD pushed back after lifting slightly higher over the long weekend break. More Makeup Mussolini tariff news barely moved risk markets while the RBNZ served up another interest rate cut that sent Kiwi slightly higher
It has been widely reported that Australians have suffered one of the largest declines in real per capita household disposable income in the advanced world. The February Statement of Monetary Policy (SoMP) from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) contained an analysis of the household income recession, noting that Australia has experienced “among the weakest