Far from being “rampant” inflation was tame in the first two months of this year. We know this because of big changes in the way the bureau prepares its data.
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The treasurer says the 2024 budget will be about supporting growth after the weakest economic figures in 23 years outside of a recession.
The best measure of living standards – real household disposable income per capita – has been going backwards for two years. It’s the biggest dive in living standards in half a century.
The Bureau of Statistics is considering scaling back the scope of Australia’s time-use survey in a way that will make it difficult to tell how much time we spend caring for children.
The official figures tell us inflation is 5.4%. But for working families, it’s actually 9%. Yet there is some good news ahead.
Six charts explain the Australian economy. Three of the most disturbing show living standards going backwards, productivity collapsing and household saving falling to a 15-year low.
The ABS is exploring whether and how to ask questions on gender, sexual orientation, and variations of sex characteristics.
In a speech to be delivered in Darwin, Chalmers says the government had been deliberate in its estimate in the budget. Now, “We’re in a significantly better position than we forecast.”
The new Personal Safety Survey shows eight million Australians have experienced some form of violence since the age of 15, but women are far more likely to be victims than men.
The Reserve Bank’s statement indicates there aren’t too many rate rises left. History suggests those hikes could come to an end by early spring.
After separation, mothers who experienced domestic violence on average suffered a drop in income of 34%, compared with a 20% decrease for mothers who didn’t experience domestic violence.
Australia’s economy grew unusually strongly in the year to June, when interest rate increases were yet to bite.
India is now the third-largest birthplace of Australian residents behind Australia and England, while for the first time less than half of the population has identified as Christian.
Universal schemes aimed at classifying populations by ‘race’ or ‘ethnicity’ can force us into a game of competing for better positions within a racial hierarchy.
The concept of unemployment and an unemployment rate is fairly new, dating back to the end of the second world war. It’s increasingly unfit for purpose.
New figures show economic growth edged closer back towards normal in the months to March, but the gains went to profits rather than wages.
The share of the population in work has hit an all-time high as the share of the workforce underemployed has hit a 14-year low. The fresh low in unemployment will bring higher interest rates, and perhaps higher wages.
Why raise rates now, for the first time in more than a decade? If the Reserve Bank isn’t careful, too many more rate hikes like this might help bring on a recession.
Inflation is well outside the Reserve Bank’s target band and higher than it has been for two decades.
Of the news on prices, wages, interest rates and unemployment, only the unemployment update looks set to be positive for the Coalition.
Top contributors
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Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
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Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra
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Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra
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Professor of Economics, UNSW Sydney
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Professorial Fellow and Co-Director, HILDA Survey, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Economics, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Economics and Public Policy, ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences, Australian National University
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Emeritus Professor, Department of Political Economy, University of Sydney
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Peter Whiteford is a Friend of The Conversation.
Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
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Professor of Economics, University of Canberra
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Visiting Senior Fellow in History, UNSW Sydney
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Adjunct professor, Flinders University
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Associate Professor, Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre, Curtin University
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Associate Professor, Centre for Social Research and Methods, Director, Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), Australian National University
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Research Professor in Social Policy, UNSW Sydney
