Yesterday
The instigator of WA’s GST deal says it is failing
Colin Barnett says there was no need for the prime minister to lift WA’s minimum GST “floor” from 70¢ to 75¢ in the dollar, as is set to occur from July.
- Opinion
- Federal budget
Australia’s ‘dumb’ luck budget in one extraordinary chart
Treasurers have been extremely lucky to receive big tax revenue windfalls from the China-driven mining boom, but none have been as lucky as Jim Chalmers.
This Month
- Opinion
- Interest rates
‘Vigilant’ RBA puts home loan borrowers on notice
Governor Michele Bullock has issued a fresh warning to mortgage holders, two years after the Reserve Bank of Australia began raising interest rates.
- Updated
- Exclusive
- Interest rates
Philip Lowe warns rates could rise again
The former RBA governor says with data surprising on the strong side getting back to a 2.5 per cent inflation level sustainably is not yet guaranteed.
Big government spending to widen budget deficits
Next week’s federal budget will be expansionary, not contractionary as some economists have called for, and will do less to contain inflation and interest rate pressures than Jim Chalmers’ previous surplus budgets.
- Exclusive
- Interest rates
RBA rate rise shock is being underestimated, history shows
It has raised interest rates almost every time in the last 25 years that it has faced the current high quarterly inflation figure immediately before a board meeting.
- Analysis
- Australian economy
‘Made in Australia’ risks higher interest rates and a poorer future
The old rules of economics still apply and the consequences of Albanese’s big gamble could be widely felt.
How three economists would fix the housing crisis
An economic adviser to the government has suggested a “quick win” to encourage older Australians to downsize and free up housing for younger families.
- Opinion
- Interest rates
Bullock must now warn that interest rates may rise again
When the RBA board meets next week, the key question governor Michele Bullock will be grappling with is the future pace of disinflation.
April
Loosen rules so banks can write more home loans: Liberal MP
Liberal Andrew Bragg has endorsed a call by bankers to relax home loan regulations to make it easier for first home buyers to enter the housing market.
Rein in states’ spending to help RBA, Chalmers told
Governments are on track to loosen their budgets by $50 billion in the middle of an inflation crisis and rising interest rates.
Budget spending cuts must ‘take heat off’ interest rates
To limit the RBA’s interest rate rises, tens of billions of dollars in federal and state government expenditure must be unwound, economists say.
- Opinion
- Workplace culture
Taxpayers should be furious over public service’s ‘ghost’ offices
On a recent Friday in Canberra, a deflated public servant friend revealed that there were only three people at work on a floor space that can seat 30 to 40.
- Updated
- Exclusive
- Tax reform
Former Labor minister calls for major tax shake-up
The nation “relies too much on personal income tax and corporate income tax” and “there are limits to the sustainability of that”, the OECD’s tax official and former Labor minister David Bradbury says.
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
PM’s Made in Australia green plan a ‘slippery slope’
Former Productivity Commission heads back Danielle Wood’s concerns that the government’s proposal needs clearly defined objectives and exit strategies.
‘Dangerous’ policy mix threatens rate cuts
Higher US inflation has economists warning interest rates may need to go higher to offset a “dangerous” cocktail of tax cuts and green industrial subsidies.
- Opinion
- Competition
Deal makers trumped by economists in M&A shake-up
Lawyers and bankers will lose from the merger overhaul that attempts to tackle economic concerns that industry concentration has led to higher prices and fewer start-ups.
- Opinion
- Tax reform
We need a tough treasurer to talk us through tax reform
What really matters for future living standards is government policy going above and beyond mediocre minor changes.
Insurers told to slash prices for households that reduce risks
Steps could include roof replacement, upgrading garage doors, boosting window protection, tying down sheds, and replacing flimsy hollow doors.
Australian households are world-leaders in interest rate pain: IMF
Variable-rate mortgages and high household debt make Australian consumers highly sensitive to interest rates, the IMF says, but house prices are still rising.
