Category Archives: Macroeconomy

Queensland wages growth trailing other States

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Gene Tunny

Peter Martin has a solid column in the Fairfax papers this morning on the ABS’s new average weekly earnings data, highlighting the strong growth in mining sector earnings and the very strong growth in earnings in Western Australia (Boom times … Continue reading →

Posted in Cairns, Labour market, Macroeconomy, Mining | Leave a comment

Sales of new motor vehicles continue to trend upwards

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Gene Tunny

The continuing upward trend in new motor vehicle sales (see chart below based on new ABS data) is indicative of the economy’s underlying strength and improving confidence of households. It’s probably unsurprising that the SUV share of new motor vehicle … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy | Leave a comment

Too early to assess Qantas dispute impacts

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Gene Tunny

The Qantas dispute should have minimal impacts on the Queensland economy so long as it is resolved quickly and we don’t have another grounding of the fleet. But, as Saturday’s bold move by Qantas showed, the situation is highly unpredictable. … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy, Tourism, Transport | Leave a comment

Investment pipeline begins – wrong time to cut interest rates

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Gene Tunny

From the OESR Queensland State Accounts released earlier this week: Let’s hope the RBA saw this chart before it finalised the Board papers for the Cup day meeting. Cutting rates now would add to demand pressures and lead to higher … Continue reading →

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Will the RBA cut interest rates on Cup day?

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Gene Tunny

Following yesterday’s lower than expected inflation data, and concerns about the Euro zone, there is speculation the RBA board will cut interest rates on Melbourne Cup day (Low inflation raises case for RBA rate cut). I doubt the board will … Continue reading →

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Treasury chief’s nuanced optimism on China

Posted on October 19, 2011 by Gene Tunny

Treasury Secretary Dr Martin Parkinson delivered a highly informative speech to a Goldman Sachs conference yesterday, in which he noted: …Treasury has often been portrayed as eternally optimistic on the Chinese economy – in fact, our analysis is far more … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Smaller rebound in business borrowing in Qld than in other States

Posted on October 18, 2011 by Gene Tunny

The rebound in commercial and personal financing commitments reported by the ABS yesterday (Lending Finance, Aug 2011) is good news for the economy, as it suggests businesses and households are confident about the future. Based on the ABS data, Queensland … Continue reading →

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Signs of recovery in building approvals

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Gene Tunny

Yesterday’s new ABS data show that building approvals, while still relatively low, are at least moving in the right direction:

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Rents growing again (modestly) after post-GFC stability

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Gene Tunny

The 2010-11 Annual Report of the Residential Tenancies Authority, released earlier this week, includes a wealth of interesting data relating to Queensland’s rental sector. While we know rents in some parts of Queensland (e.g. Gladstone) are soaring due to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing, Macroeconomy, Mining | Leave a comment

Dr Doom’s depression remedy

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Gene Tunny

NYU Professor Nouriel Roubini’s latest article in Slate (How to prevent a Depression) is worth a read. While I think the so-called Dr Doom is much too pessimistic about the global economy, he’s absolutely right about this: …we must accept … Continue reading →

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