News
Is Australia at risk of a recession? Here's what the data actually shows
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (743+ words) Talk of a recession in Australia has picked up in recent weeks. Rising fuel prices, a sharp fall in consumer confidence, and signs of softer spending have all added to concerns the economy may be losing momentum. A recession is…...
The trade deficit isn't an emergency " it's a sign of America's strength
9+ mon, 4+ week ago (624+ words) When U. S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping new tariffs on imported goods on April 2, 2025 " upending global trade and sending markets into a tailspin " he presented the move as a response to a crisis. In an executive order released the same day,…...
Interest rates look set to hold, after inflation and fuel costs fell in April. But it's unlikely to last
13+ hour, 37+ min ago (1017+ words) Inflation actually fell in Australia last month, thanks to temporary government fuel discounts that saw fuel prices come down by 7% from their record peaks in March. New Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show the monthly consumer price index (CPI) rose…...
Nature is good for business " and we now have numbers to show it
1+ week, 2+ day ago (807+ words) When rivers degrade, pests spread or drought hits crops, nature sends a bill. Yet it's one rarely itemised on any balance sheet, because nature's contribution to business remains genuinely hard to quantify. One major obstacle is data. Businesses rarely disclose…...
How severe has the economic impact of the Iran war been for the Gulf states?
1+ week, 6+ day ago (1045+ words) The US and Israel's war on Iran has cast a long shadow over the Gulf. It has placed many of the economies that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regional grouping " Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates…...
How the U. S. Israel war against Iran is exposing the limits of the petrodollar system
2+ week, 1+ day ago (1073+ words) For the first time since the Second World War, excluding the COVID-19 pandemic, public debt in the United States has surpassed the entire economy's GDP. As of late March, debt held by the public reached US$31. 27 trillion, just ahead of…...
Why Kevin Warsh might still prove to be an independent Federal Reserve chair
2+ week, 1+ day ago (911+ words) Kevin Warsh is now likely to secure Senate approval as the next Federal Reserve chair " and become arguably the most powerful central banker in the world. But when Warsh appeared before the Senate Banking Committee for his confirmation hearing in…...
Get ready for a budget slowdown. But Chalmers insists we won't see a recession
2+ week, 1+ day ago (733+ words) Treasurer Jim Chalmers has called his budget "ambitious in the face of adversity. Speaking to reporters in the lockup on Tuesday, he acknowledged his latest budget is "not exactly the same budget we would have handed down in February for…...
A budget with a bundle of reforms in a time of "extreme uncertainty
2+ week, 1+ day ago (927+ words) This year's budget combines fiscal policy " taxes and spending " with a heavy focus on better regulation. The budget deficit has fallen slightly from the mid-year update in December, to A$31. 5 billion, but the budget remains firmly in deficit for the…...
Feeling the pinch? Here are some ways to find savings " and even fight inflation
2+ week, 1+ day ago (767+ words) Do you ever feel like everything is getting more expensive, everywhere, all at once? You're not alone. Australians have been grappling with a cost-of-living crisis since the pandemic. Last year, it briefly began to look like inflation might finally be…...