Hi all, A quick note to offer guidance on the new website. As well as the layout changes that make it easier to access content for new readers, it comes with a dramatically improved sign-up and resubscription process, greatly enhanced speed, and a much better mobile experience (since 95% of traffic is now phone!). The
The contrast between Australia and Canada on immigration and housing could not be greater. Last week, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released net overseas migration and population data for the December quarter of 2025, which showed that Australia’s population grew by 412,500 (1.5%) in 2025, driven by NOM of 301,000 (1.1% of the population):
The collapse in the nation’s auction market rolled on this weekend, with the combined capital city preliminary clearance rate plunging to just 47.4%, its lowest reading since April 2020 during the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic. “While the preliminary clearance rate has been holding below 60% over ten of the past 12 weeks, this was
ï»ż Nordberg Kongwak · DeepT and Mr G June 2026 Stablecoins and Crypto In this podcast Deep T and Mr G explore the evolution of cryptocurrency, the rise of stablecoins, and their potential role in reshaping global finance. The discussion begins with reflections on the origins of Bitcoin during the Global Financial Crisis, challenging traditional
With the Australian housing market experiencing a price correction, driven by Sydney and Melbourne, the ABC has published an interesting report on the paralysis impacting buyers arising from the federal government’s changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax (CGT). The ABC notes that the auction clearance rate across the combined capital cities collapsed to
International Reading: âTrillion-Dollar Scamâ: Lawmakers Demand Halt to Trumpâs Golden Dome Boondoggle – Common Dreams Trump’s economic approval rating hits new low, poll finds – PBS Student Loan Defaults Rise to 9.2 Million Amid Trumpâs Crackdown – Bloomberg Americans to be hit with record-high electricity bills this summer – Independent Americans are spending $800 just
Victoria has become a lead weight on the nation’s job market, experiencing significantly higher unemployment and underemployment than the national average. The following table from the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) April labour force report shows that Victoria’s trend unemployment rate (4.8%) and underemployment rate (6.4%) were the highest on the mainland, easily exceeding the
Australia has the highest levels of rooftop solar power (PV) in the world, thanks in part to generous government subsidies that have typically flowed to higher-income, home-owning households: The wealthy are most likely to install solar and battery storage because they can afford the high upfront costs. This leaves poorer households and renters facing steep
One positive recent reform undertaken by the Albanese government to Australia’s migration system was allocating far more permanent skilled places to employer-sponsored visas at the expense of regional visas. As a result, 58,040 permanent employer-sponsored visas are planned to be issued for 2026-27, comprising 44% of the total skilled migrant intake: The Australian Treasuryâs Fiscal
The AFR’s John Kehoe argues that “the government has inadvertently underwritten a tobacco crime wave and is now trying to plug the revenue hole by increasing taxes on capital income”. He argues that the Treasury has a history of underestimating consumer responses to tax increases and overestimating receipts. Tobacco excise has risen 28% since 2023,
Here is chapter two of my journey to the seventh level of hell in Victorian “caring services” last year. As I described last week, a psychopathic mental health nurse in a major Melbourne hospital had stalked my wife for a decade, leading up to 2024. In early 2025, the psycho went completely mad and began
Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Tehran to move towards ending the war in the Persian Gulf. Trump signed the 14-point MOU on the outskirts of Paris, at the former French royal palace of Versailles, which was hosting the G7 summit. It is rather historically poetic that
This week’s official quarterly population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) confirmed that net overseas migration (NOM) continues to run hot under the Albanese Labor government. While NOM fell to 301,000 over the 2025 calendar year, that result was still 37,600 more than the single highest year under a Coalition government â i.e.,
Honestly, give it up. A federal gas reservation scheme risks deepening Australiaâs reliance on imported fuel by choking off investment in southern gas fields, Beach Energy boss Brett Woods has warned. …Beach is a vocal opponent of the plan, insisting the policy will crush domestic prices such as it but it said Laborâs signature energy policy
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released its official population statistics for the fourth quarter of 2025. Australia’s population grew by 412,500 (1.5%) in 2025, driven by net overseas migration (NOM) of 301,000 (1.1% of the population): The share of population growth from NOM remained historically high at 73% in the fourth quarter of
In this weekâs podcast, Nucleus Wealthâs Chief Investment Officer, Damien Klassen, explores the next wave of automation â examining the companies at the forefront of robotics, why China is rapidly scaling physical robots while the U.S. focuses on AI, and whether robotics could become one of the most important investment themes of the coming decade.
DXY is up and threatening to break away. AUD is struggling with JPY but CNY is still supportive. Oil and gold are saying the same thing: DXY up. AI metals kinda too. Big mining ugly. EM is swimming upstream. Junk is calm. The curve flattenned with a hawkish Fed Stocks fell on the same. The
Ordinary Australians are suffering through their worst cost-of-living crisis in generations and a record decline in their real wages, with no recovery forecast. The opposite is true for senior bureaucrats working in the federal public service. The independent Remuneration Tribunal is undertaking a 14-month review of senior federal public servants’ remuneration packages. It will assess
Here is my wrap-up of the economic dimensions of PM Pauline’s speech yesterday. Housing affordability and immigration Hanson’s primary economic claim was that excessive immigration had put undue strain on public services, housing, rents, and infrastructure. She contended that the cost-of-living dilemma is a result of Australia’s population growth outpacing the country’s ability to build
When Snowy Hydro 2.0 was first announced by former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in 2017, it was touted as a $2 billion project capable of delivering 2 megawatts of power on command and 350,000 megawatt-hours of storage by 2021. Since that announcement, Snowy Hydro 2.0 has faced a series of delays, with costs rising inexorably
As Tarric published earlier, Trump has surrendered to Iran. Iran will join the global economy, charging for the strait and supporting Hezbollah under Lebanon’s conditions. It can have a nuclear weapon any time it likes. Iran is now the Gulf hegemon. Such a move would be the end of Israel as a regional force, but
As the world continues to hold its breath over whether the fragile ceasefire in the Persian Gulf will hold, the long-awaited details of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the United States and Iran have come to light via Bloomberg. Over the course of much of the war, the evolution of negotiations surrounding the MOU
SQM Research has released its auction results for last weekend, which came in at just 35.4% from 1,094 scheduled auctions, similar to the 35.9% recorded the prior weekend from 728 auctions. Commenting on the result, SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher noted on Twitter (X) that “it looks like a floor has been found with
This month’s national accounts from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported that the economy is sliding back into a per capita recession, with real per capita GDP declining by 0.1% in the March quarter â the 10th decline in 15 quarters since the Albanese government came to office: The Westpac-Melbourne Institute leading index has
The poor economics of green hydrogen have resulted in widespread project cancellations across Australia and globally, including in China. According to the Australian Financial Review, “more than 130 projects linked to hydrogen have received federal taxpayer money going back to 2017, according to the governmentâs grants register. While many pre-date this government, easily the largest came
Don’t underestimate the madman. The more trouble he is in, the more he will roll the dice. The Trump administrationâs playbook for Cuba is clear: intensify the hardship and suffering to such an extreme degree of economic collapse and crisis that there will be an uprising. If that doesnât succeed, then we can expect a
