Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Ukraine crisis won’t prevent RBA from tightening The conflict in Ukraine is lifting commodity prices. That will boost inflation in Australia as oil and gas prices rise. And we estimate that a sharp rise in energy prices will actually boost Australia... 25th February 2022 · 8 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Australia Private Capex Survey (Q4 2021) We estimate that private investment rose by a modest 0.7% q/q in Q4, but firms’ expectations of future capital expenditure suggest investment will strengthen before long. 24th February 2022 · 2 mins read
RBA Watch Further jump in inflation to prompt June rate hike We now expect the RBA to start hiking in June in response to stubbornly high inflation. And while high household debt is a concern, the extreme tightness of the labour market coupled with continued... 23rd February 2022 · 7 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Australia Wage Price Index (Q4) The Q4 wage data won’t alter the RBA’s view that inflation isn’t sustainably within its 2-3% target band yet, but we still expect the Bank to start hiking in June as inflation surprises to the upside. 23rd February 2022 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Budget 2022 set to remain supportive Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy outlined this week that he thinks fiscal policy should remain loose until interest rates have been normalised to avoid exacerbating financial risks. Add in the... 18th February 2022 · 7 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Australia Labour Market (Jan. 2022) The further rise in Australian employment despite the Omicron outbreak in January highlights the resilience of the Australian labour market and supports our forecast that the RBA will hike rates in... 17th February 2022 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update Australia - Slump in fertility need not slow population growth The sharp drop in the fertility rate during the pandemic has already started to reverse. And even if it is sustained, the government will be able to offset a slower natural increase with higher net... 14th February 2022 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Border reopening won’t ease labour shortages much The full reopening of the border will prompt more Australians to make holidays overseas. The key point though is that it sends a powerful message that the worst of the pandemic is now behind us, which... 11th February 2022 · 5 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update RBA to hike rates to 1.75% Continued strength in underlying inflation and activity will prompt the Reserve Bank of Australia to start hiking rates in June. And we now expect the Bank to lift the cash rate to 1.75% by August... 10th February 2022 · 4 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly RBA hiking cycle to start as RBNZ’s ends The RBA is coming around to the view that rates will need to be hiked this year. And our forecast that inflation will continue to surprise the Bank in the months ahead is why we think it will start... 4th February 2022 · 4 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Australia International Trade (Dec. 2021) The fall in the trade balance in December is consistent with trade having been a sizable drag on growth at the end of last year. Australia Drop-in: Will soaring inflation prompt the RBA to follow the... 3rd February 2022 · 2 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update RBA ends QE; first rate hike will come in August The RBA today ended its bond purchases, revised up its inflation forecasts and no longer signalled that wage growth needs to be “materially higher” to meet its inflation target on a sustained basis... 1st February 2022 · 3 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Chart Pack Inflationary surge prompting monetary tightening New Zealand’s inflation surged to a 30-year high of 5.9% in Q4. And while Australia’s 3.5% was much lower, it is well above the RBA’s 2-3% target band. Trimmed mean inflation is about one percentage... 28th January 2022 · 11 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly RBA to hike rates in August The jump in consumer prices in Q4 reflected further strong gains in the usual suspects of petrol prices and costs of new dwelling purchases. But services inflation has picked up sharply as well. With... 28th January 2022 · 8 mins read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Update RBA probably won’t hike before the May election Trimmed mean inflation will probably climb above the upper end of the RBA’s 2-3% target band in Q1, which would add to the case for the RBA to start hiking rates in May. However, the RBA hasn’t... 26th January 2022 · 3 mins read
RBA Watch Surge in inflation will prompt first rate hike in August The rapid tightening of the labour market coupled with the acceleration in underlying inflation will prompt the Reserve Bank of Australia to end its asset purchases at its meeting on Tuesday 1 st... 25th January 2022 · 7 mins read
