Category Archives: Macroeconomy

Unemployment data confirm Qld economy still in soft patch

Posted on February 18, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Regular readers will know that I have been a bit skeptical about the State Government’s overly optimistic statements regarding the Queensland economy (e.g. see yesterday’s post). The economy has certainly been resilient at the end of the mining boom, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Labour market, Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Trend is the Treasurer’s friend

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Gene Tunny

The Queensland Treasurer Curtis Pitt issued an upbeat media release on the Queensland economy yesterday, but I am unsure the Queensland Treasury gross state product (GSP) data he quotes should be interpreted as optimistically as he interprets them. The media … Continue reading →

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Challenging conditions outside SEQ

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Gene Tunny

In his recent commentary regarding strong growth in the retail sector, National Retail Association CEO Trevor Evans noted: “South East Queensland is performing strongly but performance in Queensland is being held back by issues in some areas…Some areas are living … Continue reading →

Posted in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Infrastructure, Labour market, Mackay, Macroeconomy, Mining, North Queensland, Queensland Government, Townsville, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

BOQ’s Peter Deans to give ESA Qld seminar on risk management in financial services

Posted on January 6, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Banks play an important role in modern economies: looking after people’s money, facilitating transactions, and providing credit that gives economies momentum but which can also impart volatility—e.g. when too rapid credit growth inflates housing or commercial property bubbles. Banks are … Continue reading →

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How the Qld economy performed over 2015

Posted on December 31, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In 2015, the Queensland economy proved itself resilient to the end of the mining boom, and recovered from the apparent downturn, a so-called technical recession, at the end of 2014. Even though the economy is proving resilient, growth is at … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Holiday reading

Posted on December 26, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Recently I have been reading a variety of interesting books, including Digital Gold: The Untold Story of Bitcoin by New York Times reporter Nathaniel Popper, and the Edith trilogy by eminent Australian author Frank Moorhouse. Digital Gold tells the story … Continue reading →

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Surprisingly good jobs data shows economy’s resilience

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I am quoted in today’s Courier-Mail regarding yesterday’s surprisingly good jobs data published by the ABS (e.g. see chart above): In a sign the state is working through the mining downturn, there have been 50,800 jobs added since the Palaszczuk … Continue reading →

Posted in Labour market, Macroeconomy, Tourism, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Australia Awards program with Indonesian Finance Ministry officials on strengthening the public policy process

Posted on November 12, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In late October, I felt honoured to deliver workshops on economic forecasting and industry policy to officials from the Indonesian Ministry of Finance. The officials were recipients of Australia Awards from the Australian Government and were visiting Brisbane to attend … Continue reading →

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Great presentation by HSBC’s Paul Bloxham on the economic outlook to ESA Qld

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In Brisbane today, HSBC’s Chief Economist (Australia & NZ) Paul Bloxham gave a terrific presentation on the economic outlook to the Queensland branch of the Economic Society of Australia, of which I am the Secretary. You can download his slides, … Continue reading →

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

Queensland businesses remain pessimistic on average

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Queensland businesses remain a relatively pessimistic bunch, based on the latest data from the Westpac-CCIQ Pulse Survey, which I have previously argued is the most reliable data on business confidence in Queensland (see my post from June). CCIQ’s media release … Continue reading →

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