Original article by Judith Sloan
The Australian – Page: 11 : 21-Apr-26

Even if there is an early resolution to the Iran war, which looks unlikely, there will be a hit to Australia’s economic growth rate with headline inflation increasing. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is essentially an anti-economist who is trying to transform the Australian economy from Canberra. He distrusts markets and thinks government intervention and spending can produce superior outcomes. Without a coherent economic framework, Chalmers’ response to war-induced economic difficulties is likely to be ill-advised and ineffective. His instinct will be to ditch any budget plans for real savings and to pour money into pump-priming the economy through more handouts. The minor tax reforms in the budget will be piecemeal and designed to shift attention away from the loose fiscal settings.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Original article by Jennifer Hewett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 17-Sep-24

Former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty says that while the federal government has delivered some good policies in its first term of office, it lacks any plan to revive Australia’s moribund economy. Some of the areas that Kelty suggests that the government needs to take action to stimulate the economy include a revision of bank lending rules and a major shake-up of the tax system. Kelty recently told a meeting of Melbourne business leaders that Paul Keating was correct when he said the government needs a greater dose of imagination, while he has also proposed a new model of enterprise bargaining that includes guaranteed jobs in every industry in which there is a shortage.

CORPORATES
ACTU

Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 27-Aug-24

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has defended his economic record in a speech to the Labor-aligned John Curtin Research Centre in Melbourne. Chalmers also used the speech to outline Labor’s plans to create a new ‘fourth economy’ over coming decades, which will be driven by energy, technology, demography, industry and geography; he noted that the nation’s three previous ‘economies’ have occurred roughly 40 years apart. Chalmers also used his speech to criticise Opposition leader Peter Dutton, describing him as the most divisive leader of a major political party in Australia’s modern history.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, JOHN CURTIN RESEARCH CENTRE