January
IMF lifts global growth forecast on stronger US demand
“The big story is the divergence between the US and the rest of the world,” IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said.
- Eric Martin
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
Opposition savings from housing, green energy funds in doubt
Senator Jane Hume says the Coalition will interrogate Labor’s billions of dollars tied up in funds for housing, clean energy and manufacturing, but admits they may be difficult to unwind.
- John Kehoe and Michael Read
Super admits its size is a risk but says ‘what is the alternative?’
The managers of Australia’s $4.1 trillion retirement savings pool say they are best placed to invest in banks and private lending despite warnings from the RBA and IMF.
- Hannah Wootton
- Opinion
- Private equity
This is where the next financial crisis could emerge
Private funds, which include venture capital, private equity, private debt, infrastructure, commodities and real estate, now dominate financial activity.
- John Plender
Trump’s ‘Maganomics’ will damage growth: economists
Surveys of more than 220 economists in the US, UK and Eurozone showed most respondents believed his protectionist shift would outweigh the benefits of his policies.
- Valentina Romei, Sam Fleming, Colby Smith and Olaf Storbeck
- Opinion
- World politics
Rich democracies need an acute crisis to trigger real change
It is almost impossible to sell voters on drastic reforms until their nation is in acute trouble. The chronic kind isn’t enough.
- Janan Ganesh
December 2024
IMF warns Australia; Rich Lister charged; Families sell $180m hotel
Read everything that’s happened in the news so far today.
The new world order looks like mercantilism
The chaotic politics of the past 16 years masked the steady development of a new economic order, but trade and the economy aren’t zero-sum games.
- John Authers
November 2024
IMF warns Australia and APEC on budget spending
Managing director Kristalina Georgieva told leaders while it was “remarkable” that inflation was retreating globally without recession, “in many countries it is not reflected in public sentiment”.
- Phillip Coorey
- Opinion
- Leading Indicators
Inside Canberra’s hidden $180b spending boom
Australia’s budget numbers are increasingly a mirage as billions in spending are labelled as ‘investments’ to improve the fiscal optics.
- Michael Read
October 2024
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Super system potshot a chance to double down on Keating’s vision
While we should not let the International Monetary Fund dictate how ordinary Australians’ savings are invested, it does have a point worth talking about.
- Anthony Macdonald
RBA to hold tight even as inflation hits 3½-year low
Michele Bullock is expected to look through data on Wednesday showing inflation fell to 2.9 per cent in September.
- Michael Read
Record tax take won’t stop decade of deficits: IMF
The IMF forecasts federal and state government revenue will reach a record 36.4 per cent of GDP in 2024, but the tax take won’t be enough to cover increased spending.
- Michael Read
$3.9 trillion super sector a risk to stability, warns IMF
It’s too easy for Australians to move funds in the $3.9 trillion superannuation sector into high-risk investments such as private equity, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
- Michael Read
IMF, World Bank meetings clouded by wars, economy, US election
The elephant in the room will be the potential for an election victory by Donald Trump to upend the international economic system with massive new US tariffs.
- Updated
- David Lawder
Don’t expect rapid fire rate cuts: RBA deputy governor
RBA deputy Andrew Hauser has dampened expectations of an aggressive rate-cutting cycle.
- Michael Read
A tour of the weird places the global elite hide wealth
A new book explores the ‘special zones’ created to bring in money and industry.
- Jordan Weissmann
Middle East escalation poses significant economic risks: IMF
The Washington-based global lender is closely monitoring the situation in southern Lebanon with “grave concern”.
- David Lawder
IMF warns Chalmers; Origin’s hydrogen blow; OpenAI’s $229b moment
Read everything that’s happened in the news so far today.
IMF puts Chalmers on notice over rates, super tax and spending
In its annual health check of Australia’s economy, the International Monetary Fund said more unexpected expenditure rises will force the RBA to keep rates high.
- Michael Read