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Australian business confidence is falling, amid concerning signs from other economic indicators. Dan Peled/AAP

It’s not just a drop in GDP that should worry us

Australia’s economic indicators are showing worrying signs, with business confidence falling in the face of continued low interest rates.
Current conditions make for a wild ride for investors. Scott Ableman/Flickr

Vital Signs: expect more turmoil

Low inflation gives the RBA scope to cut rates in coming months but a lot will turn on whether we continue to see persistently weak GDP growth.
It may take a magic wand from the RBA (or the Turnbull government) for Australia to escape a recession. Sam Mooy/AAP

All eyes on the Aussie dollar as Australia stalks recession

Volatility is not going away any time soon, and if the US Fed decision plays the wrong way on the Australian dollar, our central bank could soon be back in the jawboning business.
Malcolm Turnbull is facing a difficult set of economic circumstances. AAP Image/Sam Mooy

Turnbull inherits an economy battered by global headwinds

What can Turnbull do to deliver the kind of outstanding economic leadership he says Australia needs? His first step will be to acknowledge the economic problems Australia is currently facing.
When the construction phase of Queensland LNG projects like this one in Gladstone moves into production, there will be winners and losers. Dave Hunt/AAP

Why gas isn’t the answer to falling commodity prices or employment

The large Queensland liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects currently under construction will begin production over the next two years. Exploiting previously unused reserves of coal seam gas, the LNG produced…
Australia’s dairy sector will lose out due to Russian sanctions, but there are bigger issues in play. Anatoly Maltsev/AAP

Russian sanctions are the least of our agriculture sector’s problems

Russia’s targeting of $A400 million of Australian food exports and the government’s muddled response are just the latest setback for a sector struggling under failed policy approaches. Agriculture is Australia’s…
Australia’s trade relationship with Russia looked better in 2007. Dean Lewins/AAP

Tough talk but little to lose on Russian trade sanctions

Poke a Russian bear with a stick and he will retaliate. That’s the lesson facing Australian exporters today. When Australia announced it would join the United States and Europe in placing trade sanctions…
Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill mine has secured funding from multiple sources, including Export-Import banks in the US, Japan and Korea. Hancock Prospecting/AAP

Why the US Export-Import Bank backed Rinehart’s Roy Hill

When Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill mine proposal secured the multi-billion dollar financing deal needed to proceed last week, questions were asked about the US$694.4 million coming from the US Export-Import…
Investing in large-scale infrastructure will make Australia’s economy more efficient in the face of a receding mining boom. AAP

Beyond the mining boom: from resources to infrastructure

The term of the new Australian government – whether finally led by Kevin Rudd, Tony Abbott or Malcolm Turnbull – will be shaped by one dominant economic reality: the end of the mining boom. The immediate…
There is little evidence to support the belief that Australia’s productivity declines are linked to the need for labour market reform. AAP

Australia’s choice: the ‘high road’ to productivity or a race to the bottom

It is not easy to devise a solution to Australia’s productivity slowdown when a shared understanding of the problem is so elusive. While there is recognition among policy-makers that productivity is a…
A slowdown in China’s economy is not yet cause for concern in Australia. AAP

Will Australia’s economy roar in the Year of the Dragon?

These days, most economic commentators in Australia sing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to discussing our economic prospects: while the ongoing gloom in the US and the outright deterioration in…

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