The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released the wage price index for the September quarter of 2025, which reported a quarterly increase of 0.8% and an annual increase of 3.4%: The outcome aligned with the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) and market expectations, posing no significant policy implications. The following chart shows that public
Victoria has legislated a target to source 95% of its electricity from renewable energy by 2035. This is one of the most ambitious renewable energy goals in Australia and globally, designed to accelerate the state’s transition away from cheap brown coal and toward cleaner energy sources, such as wind, solar, and storage. The target is
Who would want to be a traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ retailer in Australia? Not only are they facing an explosion of shoplifting and theft, especially in Victoria, as well as soaring rental and energy costs, but they are also facing surging competition from online behemoths that offer unparalleled prices and convenience, rapidly stealing market share.
The ferrous jaws are still yawning wide. In the news, that other African mine is now complete. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, during the Council of Ministers meeting he presided over on Sunday, ordered the launch of the exploitation of iron ore extracted from the Gara Djebilet mine starting in the first quarter of 2026. The
There was a time when I thought more women in power would make a positive difference. After all, they are the caring sex, and it was my thought that that might be expressed through greater concentration on the long-term collective benefit. The naivety of this thinking is more than idle. It is a window into
The Market Ear has more. Not calm VVIX at 125 and VIX at 25 is not calm markets. Noteworthy is that the VVIX/VIX gap stays wide. Source: LSEG Workspace Put love is back Put call ratio exploding to the upside as the crowd never buys protection when they can, but when they must… Source: Tradingview
The Susan Ley-led opposition has promised that a future Coalition government would run a ‘smaller’ immigration program that is around 100,000 below current extreme levels and basically the same as excessive pre-pandemic levels: The Coalition will position the cut as a way to ease the pressure on housing, infrastructure, schools and health care, as some
Wall Street continued to selloff overnight but the falls were greater across the Atlantic as European share markets lost around 2% each despite a much lower Euro. US tech stocks made lower lows mid sessions but were able to recover later on, but it seems the wobbles in the AI bubble are deepening. Macro political
DXY is still firming. This may go on until the December Fed meeting. AUD is pinned at 0.65 cents. It looks more likely to break lower given all of those tails. CNY yawn. Gold and oil holding. AI metals are not. This is part of the junk spread widening. Miners struggle. Ditto EM. Junk is
The Victorian government’s recent tax changes—including higher land taxes, expanded levies, and reduced thresholds—have discouraged property investment by significantly increasing holding costs, reducing returns, and prompting thousands of investors to sell or avoid new purchases. In particular, the tax‑free threshold was cut from $300,000 to $50,000, meaning far more investors are now liable for land