Australian Economy

From Crikey’s Bernard Keane comes a tale of Lockheed Martin entitlement in Australia’s quest to dominate SE Asian skies: The problem is, the F-35 program is not under control, even according to the US government.

From the AFR: NSW households are set to be slugged with an increase of up to $225 a year on their gas bills as of July 1 as the start-up of LNG exports from Queensland places a squeeze on east coast supplies.

By Leith van Onselen As noted briefly by Houses & Holes, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for the March quarter 0f 2014, which registered a modest quarterly increase in prices, with the result also coming in well below economists’ expectations.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics has released March quarter inflation numbers and the bullhawks can flee back to their their befouled eyries with an undershoot on every measure, headline at 0.5% and 2.9% annual and trimmed mean at 0.5% and 2.6% annual: No rate hikes are coming.

The Department of Employment and Education (DEEWR) has released its March job vacancies index and the news is pretty average, falling 2.6%: There is only stabilisation, no recovery: It’s broad based weakness by state: And occupation: Those expecting a  sharp jobs recovery are very likely going to be disappointed.

By Leith van Onselen The Australian has published new research by the Canberra University’s National Institute for Social and Economic Modelling (NISEM), which sows that Australian wages rose by only 0.1% over the December quarter versus a 0.7% rise in living costs, meaning that real wages and living standards are going backwards.

From CIMB’s Michael Knox: Australia is at the very beginning of a recovery from an extended growth recession.

By Leith van Onselen Business Spectator’s Callam Pickering has written another good piece today, this time questioning the merits of Australia’s world-beating immigration program, which risks lowering the living standards of the pre-existing population: …high migration levels are not achieved without a cost.

By Leith van Onselen Business Spectator’s Callum Pickering has written another good article today on a particularly important issue: Australia’s growing youth unemployment: Australian society is failing its youth and setting itself up for economic disaster.

By Leith van Onselen The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has just released new motor vehicle sales for the month of March 2014, which registered a 0.3% seasonally adjusted fall over the month and a 2.8% decrease over the year (see next table).

By Leith van Onselen Around six months ago, I attended a friend’s bucks party in Melbourne’s CBD.

By Leith van Onselen Yesterday’s dwelling construction data, released by the ABS, revealed a fall in actual completions over the December quarter, but a big pick-up dwelling commencements, which are following approvals upwards.

Westpac has released its March quarter consumer price index (CPI) forecasts, with the bank seeing inflation edging-up to a headline 0.9% QoQ/3.2% YoY (from 0.8% QoQ/ 2.7% YoY) and an underlying 0.7% QoQ/ 2.8% YoY (from 0.9% QoQ/ 2.6% YoY): Our Q1 headline CPI forecast is 0.9%qtr/3.2%yr.

David Bassanese has a questionable analysis of house prices this afternoon: As should be clear, house price cycles have differed across states.

By Leith van Onselen  The Australian’s Janet Albrechtsen has written a cracking article today attacking the Abbott Government for refusing to free-up competition in the pharmacy industry, which she argues is one of the nation’s biggest entitlement racket: So here we are again.

From Westpac: The six month annualised deviation from trend growth rate of the Westpac Melbourne Institute Leading Index which indicates the likely pace of economic growth three to nine months into the future rose from –0.15% in February to –0.09% in March.

Capital Economics has produced a little note on China with which I entirely agree.

Cross-posted from The Conversation: Australia faces a fall in living standards unless policy action is taken.

By Leith van Onselen Prime Minister Tony Abbott has today announced that Badgerys Creek in Sydney’s west will be home to the city’s second airport, with work on the $2.5 billion project expected to commence in 2016 and reaching full operating capacity within a decade.

By Leith van Onselen The number of job vacancies in the mining industry have plummeted nearly 23% in the past nine months, according to the latest DFP Mining and Resources Job Index, which provides month-end data for March.