Comments on: The weak economy is at a painful turning point, one that might finally prove to be unspinnable

By: Metal Guru

Metal Guru — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 12:37:03 +0000

The RBA has kicked the economy to death. I only wish the favour could be returned in kind. Remember this was the mob who continually said:
1) Wage rises were just around the corner. (Bloody long corner)
2) Interest rates wouldn’t go up till 2024 so go out and borrow. (Started in May 2022 and have been 13 rises ever since, 2 years hence)

Th Reserve Bank have failed our economy and our kleptocrat businesses are only doing what their shareholders want and what these businesses would do under the circumstances.

By: Metal Guru

Metal Guru — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 12:31:42 +0000

“The Reserve Bank, however, is a hapless bystander at this point. Governor Michele Bullock and the RBA board have painted themselves into a corner, having paraded before the business media and the markets’ screen jockeys as the John Wayne of inflation fighters, only to be left looking more like Gary Cooper in High Noon as, one by one, other central banks start cutting rates.”
What a strange characterisation! The RBA are nothing like Gary Cooper in High Noon as, firstly, Gary Cooper as the town Sherrif won the battle with Frank Miller’s gang – something Michelle Bullock and the entire RBA Board couldn’t do with a can of Mortein and a locked room full of insects – and secondly, the RBA are not acting heroically and have never acted heroically. The RBA look more like Frank Miller’s gang of villains as they are cut down one by one and ultimately diminished and despatched through the acts of foreign external central banks who have cut interest rates.
Our RBA are just blood sucking vultures who are a one trick pony. They should feature in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show to keep the cowboy narrative alive.
Our entire economy is run by oligopolistic kleptocrats who have the ability to charge what they like.

By: Metal Guru

Metal Guru — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 12:22:36 +0000

“Which of the following economic narratives accords with reality at the moment?
That an irresponsible Labor government recklessly encouraged inflation with its big-spending budget and fake anti-inflation measures?
Or that an irresponsible Labor government has allowed economic growth to fall into near-negative territory, and is wrongly blaming the Reserve Bank?
Or that greedy, lazy workers are demanding too many pay rises without matching productivity increases, risking a wage-price spiral? Or that wages growth has slumped as consumers retreat?”

Simples. None of these. The AFR is ideological, nasty and pig-headed so I would expect nothing less.

By: Metal Guru

Metal Guru — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 12:20:17 +0000

The current Federal Labor government were always going to struggle with inflation and economic growth as 2 competing priorities. No longer is high unemployment a competing priority to inflation, that has been fixed by shifting the goalposts of defining unemployment, the real problem here is inflation and economic growth and their relation to each other as realised in the economic statistics. A higher economic growth rate may trigger higher inflation. May. Not would. Remember we have an economy of highly concentrated businesses and markets. We have an effective kleptocracy called an oligopoly. There are few players in most markets. That means there is less competition. This leads to higher prices or the ability to charge higher prices, not compete and not absorb costs into businesses. Our economy is dysfunctional. Higher prices post pandemic are baked into our economy in most of our sectors and industries. The pandemic has produced circumstances and factors like supply chain lags and shortages in productive inputs and consumer products which has led to higher prices. The economy was artificially pump primed during the pandemic in an effort to administer life support to our economy. Once the pandemic ended this life support which produced large government debt was pulled out. The economy literally had the rug pulled out from under it. We have the factors causing inflation working in tandem with the factors causing the slowdown in economic growth. The 2022 election may have been a good one for Labor to lose.

By: stuart cox

stuart cox — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 08:58:36 +0000

I’m pretty sure that it about the right time to bring out the UFO stories but this government just doesn’t have that type of relationship with the media oligarchs and it shows. The whole AUKUS thing is ransom money a bit like as tongues are tied about the incredible loss of life going on and keeping shtum, otherwise they’re a likeable bunch Labor, as long as we don’t mention the war, watching the climate shit itself.

By: zut alors

zut alors — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 01:28:12 +0000

In reply to Been Around.

The advantage for journalists is that no legwork is required for such published pieces, it’s all theory & repeated opinions.

Hark back to the 2007 GFC, name an economic ‘expert’ in Australian media who predicted it…

By: zut alors

zut alors — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 00:35:06 +0000

While these contradictory debates continue Matt Canavan declares “Inflation will always be lower under the Coalition”. He was parroting it again this morning on Nine’s Today. Stefanovic failed to remind him it had soared to in excess of 5% after 9 years of the Coalition at the time of the last federal election, surely worthy of correction? Currently it is 3.5%. We have entered the Trumpian world of fantasy presented as fact as the MSM audience is force-fed.

By: Peter Schulz

Peter Schulz — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 09:58:43 +0000

Hypocritical inconsistency is the standard modus operandi of our MSM – confect outrage over ‘wasteful government spending’ and excessive taxation at the same time as confecting outrage over sub-standard public services.

By: outta control prole

outta control prole — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 08:04:53 +0000

In reply to Been Around. Economics is a pseudoscience.

By: Been Around

Been Around — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 05:26:33 +0000

The bullish confidence with which economics ‘experts’ constantly sprout contradictory arguments is why economic commentary should have zero credibility. But, no! It is spread and multiplied by even more journalists who are ignorant of the ‘science’ of economics. And all this is designed to convince society it does not have choices in the face of alleged inevitability of economic ‘principles’. Utter nonsense, the lot of it.