God bless COVID and closed borders. The ABS has just released the labour market report for June, which recorded the lowest unemployment rate since June 2011 at 4.9%: Key statistics: Unemployment rate decreased to 4.9%. Participation rate remained at 66.2%. Employment increased to 13,154,200. Employment to population ratio increased to 63.0%. Underemployment rate increased to
NSW Health has recorded another 65 new local COVID cases over the past 24 hours: NSW recorded 65 new locally acquired cases of #COVID19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. pic.twitter.com/tW6Zxiitm6 — NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 15, 2021 There have been 929 locally acquired cases reported since 16 June 2021, when the first
The AFR has taken another shot at RBA governor Phil Lowe for daring to admit that Australia’s mass immigration program pushed down wage growth. The robber baron’s paper of choice has now enlisted economics editor John Kehoe to cherry-pick research and testimony claiming that immigration does not push down wages. Below are Kehoe’s main arguments:
By Gareth Aird, head of Australian economics at CBA Key Points The lockdown of Greater Sydney has significantly increased the level of uncertainty over economic outcomes in the near term. There will be a negative hit to GDP and employment over Q3 21 because of the lockdown, but income for impacted workers and businesses will
A snap lockdown of at least days was heavily rumoured last night after the number of cases linked to two separate COVID-19 clusters rose to 11. They included a Bacchus Marsh teacher who caught the virus after spending time with a friend who lives in the locked-down Maribyrnong apartment building at the centre of the
Yesterday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released dwelling construction data for the March quarter, which showed that detached house commencements hit the highest level on record over the quarter, whereas unit commencements fell to a nine-year low: By contrast, actual dwelling completions remained depressed over the quarter, suggesting the pipeline of construction is well
CoreLogic has released a new report showing that it is cheaper to service a mortgage than rent across one-third of the nation’s properties, with New South Wales and Victoria primarily responsible for warping the results: CoreLogic analysis suggests servicing a mortgage is now cheaper than paying rent on 36.2% of Australian properties, which is higher
Global Macro / Markets / Investing: Treasury yields are flat even after June’s hot inflation report – CNBC The Economic Mechanism Behind the Populist Backlash to Globalization – Ineteconomics Ending pension lock is a start, but there’s no easy fix to the yawning generation gap – The Guardian A Housing Frenzy Is Sparking Bidding Wars
The ABS has released its final Household Impacts of COVID-19 survey, which contains the following chart showing that Australians are increasingly happy to get vaccinated: Specifically: 73.4% of Australian adults agreed to get vaccinated in June 21, the highest recorded level. Opposition to getting vaccinated fell to 11.4% in June 21, down from a peak
May’s Victorian Budget implemented a new windfall gains tax for properties whose value is boosted by a council rezoning. This tax will apply to properties where the value is boosted by more than $100,000, with a 50% tax on windfalls above $500,000. The clearest indication that this windfall tax is good policy has come from
SEEK has released its June Employment Report, which shows that applications per job ad continue to track near historical lows: STATE OF THE NATION: HIGH JOB AD VOLUMES CONTINUE WITH APPLICATIONS PER JOB AD STILL LOW The latest SEEK Employment Report shows job ad levels remain high with a 23.7% increase when compared to June
Amid the conga-line of evidence showing that temporary migrants have been ruthlessly exploited on Australia’s farms, which has frequently been labelled “modern slavery”, the Australian Workers Union (AWU) has lodged an application with the Fair Work Commission to amend the Horticulture Award to guarantee a minimum casual rate of pay for all farm workers. As
SQM Research has released its June rental report, which recorded the lowest national rental vacancy rate since May 2011 at just 1.7%: The next chart plots the time series at the national level and shows clearly the sharp reduction in the vacancy rate over the past year: And here is the time series across the
NSW Health has recorded 97 new local COVID cases over the past 24 hours: NSW recorded 97 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. pic.twitter.com/YfNptxyua5 — NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 14, 2021 Of the 97 locally acquired cases reported to 8pm last night, 70 are from South Western
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released Overseas Arrivals and Departures data for May 2021, which confirmed that net migration into Australia has moved back into positive. There were a net 3,480 permanent & long-term arrivals in May, which followed April’s 270 net arrivals: Nevertheless, there have been 19,810 net permanent & long-term departures
The ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence index rose 2.0% to 110.0 points in the weekend of 11-12 July despite the worsening virus outbreak in Sydney and the extension of the city’s hard lockdown. The key movements in the sub-indices were as follows: With Brisbane, Perth and Darwin emerging from their snap lockdowns, consumer confidence rebounded 2.0%
The federal and NSW governments have responded to the growing outbreak in Greater Sydney by agreeing to provide a combined $5.1 billion in COVID-19 disaster payments for businesses and individuals who have been affected by the lockdown. The funding commitment is based on expectations that the lockdown will be extended by at least four weeks. Prime
Treasury’s latest Intergenerational Report (IGR) projects that Australia’s population will grow by a whopping 13.1 million people (~50%) over the next 40 years to 38.8 million people. This is the equivalent to adding another Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to Australia’s existing population. Moreover, 74% of this growth will come directly from net overseas migration (NOM), which
The end of the Morrison Government’s HomeBuilder grant on 14 April 2021 has failed to dampen new home sales, which “jumped 15.3 per cent to be 11.2 per cent higher in the quarter than the same time in 2019”, according to HIA Economist Angela Lillicrap: “The strength of new home sales nationally suggests that there
Global Macro / Markets / Investing: Only the Rich Could Love This Economic Recovery – NY Times Higher inflation is here to stay for years, economists forecast – WSJ Janet Yellen Warns That Coronavirus Variants Threaten Global Recovery – NY Times Semiconductor Shortages and Vehicle Production and Prices – Cleveland Fed A Housing Frenzy Is
An Australian Council of Superannuation Investors survey has revealed that the CEOs of ASX 100 companies received no annual bonus in 2020, double that of the previous year. They included Alan Joyce of Qantas, Marnie Baker of Bendigo & Adelaide Bank and Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz of Mirvac. Ed John from the ACSI says that the pandemic
The Reserve Bank has repeatedly said that the prospect of negative interest rates in Australia is highly unlikely. However, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has advised that it raised the prospect of zero or negative interest rates with the nation’s banks in late 2020, and asked them to ensure that their technology systems would
Dr Judith Sloan was the Commissioner in charge of the Productivity Commission’s 2006 review into the Economic Impacts of Migration and Population Growth. Therefore, she speaks with authority on the subject. Today Dr Sloan has torn apart the false claim in Treasury’s Intergenerational Report (IGR) that increasing immigration is good for the nation’s finances. This
The Centre for Public Integrity has compared Australia’s regulation of federal MPs with that of the UK, Canada and New Zealand, and has found it to be considerably weaker. The Centre contends this is due to the failure of Australia to adopt a parliamentary code of conduct for federal MPs. It wants Australia to implement
NSW Health has recorded another 89 local COVID cases over the past 24 hours: NSW recorded 89 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. pic.twitter.com/GMaUFsS56b — NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 13, 2021 Of the 89 locally acquired cases reported to 8pm last night, 64 are from South Western
Amazingly, Labor will not make changes to the stage three income tax cuts if it wins the upcoming federal election. The legislated tax cuts are due to take effect as from 1 July 2024 and will see a 30% tax rate applied to all income between $45,000 and $200,000, while the 37% tax rate will
Roy Morgan’s inflation expectations survey for June has been released which reports that Australians expected inflation of 4% over the next two years, up 0.3% and the highest Inflation Expectations since the pandemic began. Inflation Expectations are also now 0.8% higher than they were a year ago – the biggest year-over-year increase since the series
Below is the first in a new monthly routine of special reports that will be provided exclusively to MacroBusiness subscribers. The Australian economy’s better than expected recovery, driven by unprecedented fiscal and monetary support, has delivered the biggest and broadest property price boom for generations. All five major capital city markets have experienced astonishing rebounds
For years we have been told that Australia’s visa system is world-leading because it provides the economy with vital skills and plugs so-called critical labour shortages. This view is generally based on a superficial examination of Australia’s permanent migration program, whereby the ‘skilled’ stream accounted for around two-thirds of the total intake pre-COVID: The reality
Global Macro / Markets / Investing: Higher inflation is here to stay for years, economists forecast – WSJ The bond market agrees with the Federal Reserve — inflation is temporary – CNBC Solar Is Dirt-Cheap and About to Get Even More Powerful – Bloomberg Virus variants threaten global recovery, G20 warns – Reuters Capitalist rulers
