Australian Economy

As if the collapse in Sydney water storages wasn’t enough: Now the city’s water supply faces the possibility of contamination from bushfire ash and debris from the fire.

The run of weak consumer data continue with the latest ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence survey stuck firmly below average levels and tracking near multi-year lows, despite posting a modest rebound this week: As shown above, the consumer confidence index was 5.8 points lower than the historical average.

Via ANZ: As feared, the peak Christmas shopping season of 2019 is turning out to have been much weaker versus the past few years.

Markets have stopped discounting bad Aussie data in the past few months as global trading dynamics overtake fundamentals.

Digital Finance Analytics has released its latest Household Financial Confidence Index, which has collapsed to a record low: DFA is releasing the latest in our 52,000 household survey series examining household financial confidence.

In late 2017, the Victorian Labor Government completed a shady $6.7 billion deal with Transurban to build the West Gate Tunnel Project, which will see Transurban contribute $4.4 billion towards the cost in exchange motorists paying $15 billion in additional tolls on CityLink until 2045.

Last week we reported that water wars had hit the Tamworth region.

Former federal Labor MP, Craig Emerson, has penned an article in The AFR warning that the relentless rise of migrants workers on temporary visas is crushing Australian wage growth, alongside the expansion of low productivity personal services industries, like food delivery.

The traditional Gallup International End of Year survey conducted in countries all over the world shows Australians are amongst the least optimistic about 2020 of anyone: As shown above, only 12% of Australians are optimistic about 2020, versus 40% that are pessimistic.

Below is preliminary analysis from Westpac Economics on the economics of the current bushfire crisis: Summary Bushfires are currently affecting large parts of south eastern Australia with elevated risk of further fires in coming weeks.

The ABS has released retail sales figures for the month of November, which recorded 0.9% growth in the value of retail sales over the month in seasonally-adjusted terms, with annual sales growth lifting to 3.2%: In trend terms, annual retail sales growth rose to 2.9%.

Australia’s tourism industry is Australia’s fifth biggest export, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Export revenues have also roughly doubled since 2013: However, there are widespread concerns that the bushfire crisis will stop international tourists from visiting Australia, smashing the industry alongside export revenue.

The retail recession afflicting Australia has been well documented.

Mortgage rates may have cratered, but mortgage stress has lifted to another record high with 1.1 million households now under stress, comprising 32.7% of borrowing households.

For years, City of Melbourne’s planning chairman and principal fellow at Melbourne University, Nick Reece, has vigorously defended the mass immigration ‘Big Australia’ policy.

After yesterday’s ABS job vacancies data for the November quarter revealed a slight uptick: CommSec’s perma-bull chief economist, Craig James, was quick to put lipstick on a pig: Commsec’s Craig James said: “There are jobs to be had, especially, it seems in the public sector.

With the NSW regional city of Tamworth currently experiencing Stage 5 water restrictions, and Chaffey Dam at just 13.4% capacity, water wars have begun.

Over recent years, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) head, Rod Sims, has issued a spate of warnings about, and voiced opposition to, the proliferation of privatisations being undertaken across the country, claiming that it is gouging consumers.