Tag Archives: tradinghours

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

Let’s have Brisbane Festival retail trading hours all year round

Accustomed as I am to Queensland’s over-regulated economy, I was surprised the other week when shopping at the Spring Hill Woolworths to find out it has extended trading hours during the current Brisbane Festival season, which culminates in the River … Continue reading

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

Priorities for boosting tourism in Qld

Veteran ad man Don Morris AO spoke to the Property Leaders Brisbane group at the swanky Emporium South Bank hotel on Thursday night about how Queensland can boost tourism. Morris, now at Pure Projects, was part of the Mojo Advertising … Continue reading

Posted in Brisbane, Tourism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Guest post from Rod Bogaards: Trading hours’ report fails to make the case for continued regulation in Qld

I am delighted to publish this guest post from my fellow economist Rod Bogaards, currently a consultant to the World Bank, on the recent Queensland trading hours review by John Mickel. GT Trading hours’ report fails to make the case … Continue reading

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

Upcoming ESA Qld event: How economics improved the world in 2016

2016 has not been a good year for economics. Brexit and the US Presidential election result both implied a rejection of free trade and free markets by large numbers of people in the UK and US. Economists have learned that … Continue reading

Posted in qut, Retail trade, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Qld unemployment rate trends up and jobs trend down

The April 2016 ABS jobs data confirm the view I have expressed for a while now that the Queensland economy is under-performing (see charts below and Treasury’s brief). While in South-East Queensland conditions appear reasonable, the regions are struggling with … Continue reading

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

After Jobs Growth Summit, business groups need to lobby hard for better policies

At today’s Queensland Jobs Growth Summit at Parliament House in Brisbane, I did my best to argue for good economic policy. After Deputy Premier Jackie Trad’s speech, I asked her whether the Government would consider fast-tracking the review of taxi … Continue reading

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

Tuesday’s Jobs Growth Summit a great opportunity to push for better economic policies

On Tuesday, I will be attending the Queensland Jobs Growth Summit at Parliament House, which is being hosted by UQ’s School of Economics (my occasional employer) and the Australia Institute. My business Adept Economics is one of several Summit sponsors. … Continue reading

Posted in IR, Labour market, Macroeconomy, Queensland Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Long-run benefits of privatisation are undeniable

Last Friday, in an opinion piece in the Courier-Mail (see image above) that was consistent with its current “Go Queensland” campaign, I re-entered the debate on privatisation: Privatisation, legalising Uber and deregulating trading hours are first steps towards boosting the … Continue reading

Posted in Energy, Infrastructure, Productivity, Queensland Government, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Qld small businesses not as optimistic as those in NSW and Victoria

Queensland’s lacklustre economy is reflected in our small and medium businesses remaining less optimistic than those nationwide, particularly in NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT, according to the latest Sensis survey of small and medium businesses, those businesses with fewer … Continue reading

Posted in Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments