Economy
Consumer spending plunge brightens hopes of rate cut
16 January
Australians pulled back sharply on purchasing household goods after bringing forward spending during Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. Consumer spending fell 1.8 per cent in December after a rise in November, with financially stretched households...[Read More]
Consumers feel finances slide but hold hope for future
16 January
Australians are feeling increasingly pessimistic about their household finances even as signs suggest the economy is set to improve. Consumer confidence slipped in the latest survey from Westpac and the Melbourne Institute, with sentiment declining...[Read More]
Twelve days’ reproductive health leave could save $26b
15 January
Australia’s economy is deprived of $26.6 billion annually due to lost productivity from untreated reproductive health conditions, a report reveals. The findings have fuelled calls for a national entitlement of 12 days of reproductive leave. The...[Read More]
Australia’s bullet-proof jobs market put to the test
15 January
Attention is poised to turn to the state of hiring and firing in Australia for signs the labour market is gradually unwinding as expected in a sluggish economy. Thursday’s labour force numbers for December from the Australian Bureau of Statistics...[Read More]
Early rate-cut hopes alive as core inflation eases
9 January
Mortgage-holders and a prime minister in election mode are hoping an encouraging step down in underlying inflation will pave the way for a February interest rate cut. Economists were generally heartened by official monthly inflation numbers, though...[Read More]
Inflation rate edges higher to 2.3 per cent
9 January
Australia’s headline inflation rate has bumped higher to 2.3 per cent in November, up from 2.1 per cent in October. The headline figure was broadly expected to shift higher to 2.2 per cent in the official monthly readout from the Australian Bureau...[Read More]
Coalition insists nuclear plan won’t blow up economy
8 January
A warning the coalition’s nuclear energy plan will shrink the Queensland economy by up to five per cent has been dismissed by the opposition, following a similar red flag for NSW. “Whichever way you want to look at it, this is a lower-cost...[Read More]
Rate cuts on horizon in mixed 2025 for the economy
2 January
Australians have endured taxing economic conditions in the past calendar year, but there is cause for cautious hope in 2025. Long-awaited interest rate cuts are broadly expected in the first half of the year, providing household budgets with...[Read More]
Short trips, cheaper grub: tight budgets change travel
2 January
Booking hotels and tickets well in advance has long defined Australian travellers but as household budgets come under stress, last-minute trips and spontaneity are becoming more popular. Amid high prices for groceries, housing and other essentials,...[Read More]
Welfare payments, wage theft laws to change in new year
2 January
MAJOR CHANGES TO PAYMENTS AND REGULATIONS AFFECTING AUSTRALIANS IN 2025: * Wage theft laws will come into effect, meaning employers who underpay workers will be committing a criminal offence * More than one million Australians will see government...[Read More]
Productivity slump worsens Australia’s deficit dilemma
26 December
Australian productivity is in the doldrums, complicating matters for a government struggling to grow its way out of a debt problem. Labour productivity – which measures how much output is produced per hour worked – fell 0.8 per cent in the 12...[Read More]
Cost of giving diminishes Christmas joy
26 December
Balancing the difficult reality of cost-of-living pressures with the desire to buy gifts, take holidays and put a feast on the table this Christmas is forcing Australians to make tough decisions. While some families will rely on cutbacks to achieve...[Read More]
Deficits dig deeper holes as cracks appear in budget
19 December
Australia’s finances have been downgraded by $21.8 billion as rising spending and plunging tax receipts set up a decade of budget deficits. The degraded fiscal bottom line was laid bare in Wednesday’s mid-year economic and fiscal outlook, which...[Read More]
Economic challenges laid bare in mid-year budget review
19 December
KEY FORECASTS FOR AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMY: * The economy is expected to grow at 1.75 per cent in 2024/25, before recording real GDP growth of 2.25 per cent, 2.5 per cent and 2.75 per cent in the years following * Unemployment is expected to rise to...[Read More]
Young families bear the brunt of cost-of-living crisis
12 December
Expenses for families with a child aged younger than five are 27 per cent higher than in 2021, according to research that shows they are suffering most from the cost-of-living crisis. While headline inflation has fallen to 2.8 per cent, daily...[Read More]