Category Archives: Macroeconomy

Qld Govt’s new jobs target much more achievable than previous 4% unemployment rate target

Posted on January 11, 2015 by Gene Tunny

The Premier today announced a relatively conservative employment growth target of 209,000 new jobs over six years, which he based on Treasury advice (see LNP unveils plan for the Jobs of Tomorrow). So long as the economy doesn’t remain in … Continue reading →

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

Up-tick in Queensland building approvals, while Victoria surges

Posted on January 9, 2015 by Gene Tunny

There was a welcome 5.6% increase in building approvals in November last year according to ABS data released yesterday (see chart above), largely due to approvals of new apartments and townhouses. Of course, the volatility of approvals from month-to-month means … Continue reading →

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

Earlier election better for the Queensland economy

Posted on January 6, 2015 by Gene Tunny

It’s good news for the Queensland economy that the Premier is expected to announce a late January or early February election today. The CCIQ September quarter Pulse Survey report notes that uncertainty around the upcoming election has affected business expectations, … Continue reading →

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Queensland economic outlook for 2015

Posted on January 2, 2015 by Gene Tunny

It became clear toward the end of 2014 that the upcoming Queensland election would be fought in a relatively weak economy. 2014 unfortunately saw an increase in Queensland’s unemployment rate from around 6 per cent to around 7 per cent … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Qld waiting for LNG exports to boost economic growth, as internal demand falls away

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Gene Tunny

The first exports of LNG from Curtis Island off Gladstone are expected to occur later this month, and they can’t come soon enough for the Queensland economy, with our current economic weakness confirmed by State Final Demand estimates in yesterday’s … Continue reading →

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

Qld Government likely to go into election campaign with weak economy

Posted on November 26, 2014 by Gene Tunny

New ABS data released today show a large drop in engineering construction activity – i.e. the heavy construction activity that has been largely associated with the resources sector in recent years. At the same time as this drop is occurring, … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing, Macroeconomy, Mining | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Productivity push from Qld Govt needed after living standards growth stalls

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Gene Tunny

Queensland Treasury econocrats should start investigating measures to improve our productivity performance, after ABS State Accounts data released on Friday confirmed a big slowdown in living standards growth over the last decade or so – measured, roughly I admit, by … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy, Productivity | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Economic weakness hits Qld retailers

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Gene Tunny

2014 has been a challenging year for Queensland retailers, with retail turnover not growing, and actually declining by around 1% from levels seen earlier in the year (see chart below). I suspect a large part of this is due to … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy, Mining, Retail trade, Tax | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mining investment decline has driven recent economic weakness

Posted on August 27, 2014 by Gene Tunny

New data from the ABS show that although residential and commercial building activity is picking up nicely, the pick up is in no way large enough to offset the decline in heavy/engineering construction, which has largely occurred in the resources … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing, Macroeconomy, Mining | Leave a comment

Builders much more optimistic than current conditions would warrant

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Gene Tunny

Broadly speaking, humans are biased towards being optimistic, and the Master Builders Survey of Industry Conditions for June 2014 is a good example of the optimism bias. Builders across Queensland, and especially in the South-East, are much more optimistic about … Continue reading →

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