Author Archives: Gene Tunny

Billionaire and inheritance taxes podcast chat with Prof. Miranda Stewart

There are growing calls to increase taxes on the wealthy in advanced economies such as the United States and Australia. For instance, US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez controversially wore a white evening dress with the words Tax the Rich written in … Continue reading

Posted in Tax | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

ABS reveals big impact of lockdowns on retail trade + today’s livestream link

Let’s hope the Queensland Government doesn’t impose a lockdown in response to the new cases coming out of Goondiwindi, as the ABS’s estimates of retail turnover for September quarter show us once more the large adverse impact that lockdowns have … Continue reading

Posted in Macroeconomy, Retail trade | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Gov’t says COVID “enduring emergency” – “temporary” powers will be in place longer than two years

As expected, the Queensland Government has brushed off One Nation MP Stephen Andrew’s e-petition to “Restore Democracy in Queensland”, citing the “enduring emergency” from COVID-19. The Government still claims the emergency powers it gave to the Chief Health Officer in … Continue reading

Posted in Queensland Government | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Decarbonising the Qld economy seminar at HopgoodGanim on 9 November

Decarbonising the economy to address climate change will disproportionately impact Queensland relative to the rest of Australia, particularly given the importance of coal mining to some of our regional economies and to our state Treasury through royalties. I’m holding a … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Senator Canavan explains why he opposes Net Zero by 2050 in my latest Economics Explored episode

In Episode 111 of my Economics Explored podcast, Queensland Senator Matt Canavan explains why he opposes the Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 objective. We have a wide-ranging conversation covering COP26, nuclear energy, hydrogen, China, the US political situation (particularly … Continue reading

Posted in Climate change, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Job vacancies by Qld region

In my last Friday livestream, I mentioned surging job vacancies across Queensland (and in many parts of the rest of Australia, too). Vacancies are at record levels in four out of seven Queensland regions (see the chart below using National … Continue reading

Posted in Labour market | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Weekly wrap up – Aussie reopening, Kiwi inflation, oil and petrol prices, and Bitcoin news

My latest Friday livestream covered: accelerating NZ inflation and the implications for interest rates of accelerating inflation in advanced economies more broadly; the great Australian reopening and booming job vacancies (i.e. as noted by the National Skills Commission “Nationally job … Continue reading

Posted in Labour market, Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Qld retail inquiry – industry demands greater consumer choice and removal of inconsistencies

The Queensland Parliament’s Education, Employment and Training Committee is undertaking an inquiry into retail trading hours which could lead to improved consumer choice and reduced inconsistencies, but will probably end up recommending minimal changes, I fear. Hopefully, it will at … Continue reading

Posted in Retail trade | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Livestream on US inflation, Aussie jobs data, and Qld’s low vax rate

Yesterday afternoon I did my first livestream, covering: the growing concern internationally about accelerating inflation, prompted by the latest US CPI figures; the September ABS Labour Force data revealing big drops in hours worked and workforce participation in the locked-down … Continue reading

Posted in Labour market, Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Good sign the Great COVID Panic will end in Qld soon

A few weeks ago I observed that it took the NRL Grand Final for the Queensland Government to adopt a more rational approach to the pandemic, and now, thankfully, there are further signs of rationality from the Government, with the … Continue reading

Posted in Budget, Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment