Category Archives: Interest Rates

Of razor gangs, budget cuts and the policy mix

Posted on November 18, 2011 by

In the Channel Nine series Underbelly Razor – as in real life – Sydney’s criminal matriarch Tilly Devine did not hesitate to wield the razor to keep her motley empire in line and protect it against incursion by rival gangs. … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Gillard Government, Global Financial Crisis, Interest Rates, Mining Boom, Reserve Bank | Leave a comment

Euro zone a car crash: best keep your eyes on the road

Posted on November 14, 2011 by

You know how most of the traffic created by a car crash is not the crash itself, but everyone slowing down to have a rubberneck? Well, the same thing can happen with economies. And fair enough, the unfolding car crash … Continue reading →

Posted in Banks, Budget, Currency, Employment, Gillard Government, Global Financial Crisis, Interest Rates, Mining Boom, Reserve Bank | 1 Comment

Trouble keeping up with Euro woes? Get used to it.

Posted on November 14, 2011 by

Mamma Mia. Where are those happy days? They seem so hard to find. The Greek tragi-comedic musical continues to play on continuous loop. Leading characters are still struggling to sing from the same song sheet, emitting only a discordant jumble … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Global Financial Crisis, Interest Rates | Leave a comment

Don’t Panic! You’re all going to panic now, aren’t you?

Posted on September 26, 2011 by

IS THERE any more surefire way to induce widespread panic than the phrase “don’t panic”? Well, here goes anyway: DON’T PANIC. May as well leave panicking to the fickle souls trading daily in financial markets, if only because they are … Continue reading →

Posted in Employment, Global Financial Crisis, Interest Rates, Mining Boom, Reserve Bank | 1 Comment

Whither house prices?

Posted on August 15, 2011 by

Want to hear some good news? Amid the sharemarket turmoil, street riots and other portents of impending apocalypse, relative calm has descended on the Australian housing market. Home affordability has improved.

Posted in Banks, Employment, Housing, Interest Rates, Reserve Bank | Leave a comment

US credit rating downgrade explained

Posted on August 8, 2011 by

PERHAPS the most confusing thing about the first-ever downgrade to the credit rating of the United States government is the way it simultaneously says everything, and nothing, about the future of the world economy. In simple terms, a country’s credit … Continue reading →

Posted in Banks, Budget, Gillard Government, Interest Rates, Mining Boom, Reserve Bank | 9 Comments

Don’t be fooled by the whinging, we’re ok

Posted on August 1, 2011 by

We don’t like carbon taxes and we don’t like boats. Mention population growth and we’re at each other’s throats. We don’t like interest rate rises and we disdain debt. We can’t stomach liars and we never forget. Australians, it seems, … Continue reading →

Posted in Behavioural Economics, Employment, Housing, Inflation, Interest Rates, Reserve Bank | 3 Comments

The US debt crisis explained

Posted on July 29, 2011 by

Getting to grips with the long term implications of the sovereign debt debacle unfolding in the United States Congress involves understanding a lot of “d” words. Here’s a quick cheat sheet to help get you up to speed. The US … Continue reading →

Posted in Banks, Budget, Currency, Interest Rates | 9 Comments

No more flogging the debt horse

Posted on July 22, 2011 by

A golden age for Australian retailers is over. Gone. Finished. Retailers offer plenty of short-termscapegoats for their current woes: the carbon tax, the flood levy, the higher Australian dollar, higher interest rates. But, in reality, the current downturn in retail … Continue reading →

Posted in Banks, Housing, Inflation, Interest Rates | 1 Comment

Westpac’s Bill Evans’ BIG call on rate cuts

Posted on July 22, 2011 by

SMH 16-07-11: THE collapse in consumer sentiment and increasing risk of a European sovereign debt default have prompted Australia’s second-biggest bank to forecast the Reserve Bank will cut interest rates by one percentage point by the end of September 2012.

Posted in Banks, Inflation, Interest Rates, Reserve Bank | Leave a comment