Morrison expects jobless rate below 4 pct
CANBERRA, AAP – Scott Morrison expects the unemployment rate will fall below four per cent this year and to a level not seen in Australia for almost 50 years. The unemployment rate fell to 13-year low of 4.2 per cent in December. “I believe we can now achieve an unemployment rate with a ‘three’ in…
Home price rises not as fast as early 2021
CANBERRA, AAP – Growth in house prices went up a notch during the seasonally quiet January holiday period, but nowhere as fast as a year ago. The CoreLogic national home value index rose 1.1 per cent in January, for an annual rate of 22.4 per cent, the highest level since June 1989. In approximate dollar…
Aust shares rally, miners and energy lead
SYDNEY, AAP – A broad-based rally has continued a fine start to February for the ASX after Wall Street overcame fears about rising interest rates. The Australian market was 1.2 per cent higher on Wednesday, a day after the Reserve Bank in its first policy statement of the year downplayed the idea of looming rate…
RBA must change rate rhetoric: Costello
CANBERRA, AAP – Former Liberal treasurer Peter Costello believes interest rate rises are now inevitable and the Reserve Bank of Australia must start changing its rhetoric. Mr Costello, now chair of the Future Fund, was speaking as the central bank holds its first meeting of the year on Tuesday. Since its last gathering the unemployment…
Supply and support key for electric cars
CANBERRA, AAP – Stop blaming the consumer for not wanting electric cars, a summit has been told. The world may be years away from mass take-up of electric trucks, vans and tractors but electric cars are accelerating in the biggest economies, forecasters told a BloombergNEF summit on Tuesday. Chelsea Sexton, advisor to the United States’…
Tech leads ASX higher before RBA decision
SYDNEY, AAP – An imminent Reserve Bank rates decision has not deterred investors from pushing the ASX higher as they enjoyed momentum from a good lead from US markets. The Australian market was higher by 0.72 per cent at noon on Tuesday, only hours before the Reserve Bank gives its first forecast on whether a…
Confidence perks up as Omicron cases ease
CANBERRA, AAP – The mood among Australians improved further in the past week as falling Omicron cases appeared to outweigh rising inflation pressures, which have sparked speculation of an official rate hike this year. The ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence index rose 1.7 per cent to 101.8 in the past week, continuing its recovery from a…
PM to announce boost to research sector
CANBERRA, AAP – Prime Minister Scott Morrison will announce a billion-dollar boost to the country’s research sector during an address at the National Press Club on Tuesday. The $1.6 billion program, called Australia’s Economic Accelerator, will seek to turn early-stage research ideas into commercial successes. It will form part of a $2.2 billion plan to…
Wall Street edges up after volatile month
NEW YORK CITY, RAW – The tech-heavy Nasdaq has risen but is still on track for its worst start to the year as investors shied away from stocks with lofty valuations amid aggressive rate hike bets and geopolitical tensions. Valuations of growth and technology stocks have come under increasing scrutiny, with the Nasdaq declining 10.5…
Labor supports Kurri Kurri gas plant
CANBERRA, AAP – Labor will support the Kurri Kurri gas plant in the NSW Hunter region if it wins government, with an important caveat. The party wants Snowy Hydro Limited to run the plant on 30 per cent green hydrogen, increasing to 100 per cent by 2030. Labor leader Anthony Albanese and climate spokesman Chris…
