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Sep 2019Australian house prices back from the abyss – seven things you need to know about the Australian property market
Introduction After the biggest fall in at least 40 years – with a 10.2% top to bottom fall between September 2017 and June this year – average capital city home prices have turned up again. I thought prices would fall further with a 15% top to bottom fall led by around 25% falls in Sydney and Melbourne. But the facts changed from May – with…
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Sep 2019Nine reasons why recession remains unlikely in Australia
Australian economic growth has slowed to the weakest since the GFC. Talk of recession remains all the rage. And economists don’t have a great track record in predicting recessions globally – with an IMF study finding that of 153 recessions seen in 63 countries around the world between 1992 and 2014, economic forecasters only predicted five in April of the year before they started –…
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Sep 2019Monetary Policy Decision – Statement by Philip Lowe, RBA Governor, September 2019
At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.00 per cent. The outlook for the global economy remains reasonable, although the risks are tilted to the downside. The trade and technology disputes are affecting international trade flows and investment as businesses scale back spending plans due to the increased uncertainty. At the same time, in most advanced economies, unemployment rates…
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Aug 2019Negative rates, QE & other measures the RBA may deploy- why? will it work? what would it mean for investors?
Introduction Since the RBA started cutting interest rates again back in June and in the process taking them closer to zero there has been increasing debate that it will deploy so-called “unconventional monetary policy measures” such as negative interest rates and quantitative easing. This debate has hotted up in recent weeks after the escalation in the US-China trade war posing a rising threat to global…
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Aug 2019Burnout! Is it time to take some time?
By Emily Connell Nutritional Medicine Self-care – it’s a bit of a ‘buzz’ word. Everyone is telling us we need more of it – can’t pour from an empty cup and all that. But it’s harder than it sounds! It’s so much more than pedicures and massages (don’t get me wrong – these are great!), but it’s actually about scheduling in regular time for YOU….
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Aug 20195 sustainable holiday destinations to add to your travel list
From wildlife-filled jungles to some of the world’s most spectacular beaches, sustainable travel is on the rise across the globe. While there’s nothing like swaying in a hammock with a cocktail or two, it’s even better when you know your holiday dollars help to support communities and environmentally-friendly practices, while protecting cultural and natural heritage. Sink into that hammock at one of these sustainable travel…
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Aug 2019Spending money in a cashless world
How the move to electronic payments could be making it easier to spend…and what to do about it. It’s Thursday morning and almost the end of the working week. You’re walking to the train station and you realise you’ve forgotten to top up your public transport card. No matter…a few clicks later and you’ve transferred $50 over. At the station you grab a takeaway flat…
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Aug 2019From bartering to smartphones—how our money habits have evolved
When’s the last time you used cash? New technologies are changing the way we transact Two sheep for an axe? A pigskin coat for a sack of grain? Three bushels of wheat for a goat? We’ve come a long way as a species. Back in the day, bartering was the only way to conduct transactions. It was time consuming, unsophisticated and inefficient—every transaction had to…
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Aug 2019Plunging bond yields & weak share markets amidst talk of recession – what does it mean for investors?
Introduction Only last month share markets in the US and Australia were at record highs. But ever since President Trump ramped up the US-China trade war again at the start of August, financial markets have seen a significant increase in volatility. Share markets have had 6% or so falls from their highs to recent lows and bond yields have plunged to new record lows in…
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Aug 2019Why ESG has moved from nice-to-do to must-do
Investors increasingly care about ESG. Traditionally we could rely on authorities to take our concerns into account and update the regulatory framework accordingly. But, with political polarisation increasing, this mechanism is coming undone. As a community of companies and investors, the onus is on us to step in and co-operate to develop an ESG structure that works for all of us. Until recently, community expectations…