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Judith SloanContributing Economics Editor

Judith Sloan is an economist and company director. She holds degrees from the University of Melbourne and the London School of Economics. She has held a number of government appointments, including Commissioner of the Productivity Commission; Commissioner of the Australian Fair Pay Commission; and Deputy Chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

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commentaryWorld

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (2nd R) and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick look on as President Donald Trump signs an executive order as in the Oval Office of the White House on April 9, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

Trump’s calculated brinkmanship or a humiliating backdown?

Either way, Donald Trump’s decision to suspend his suite of reciprocal tariffs is very welcome news.

Judith Sloan

COMMENTARYNation

Clear win to Taylor: Chalmers off his game in Treasurers’ debate

Jim Chalmers is a good retail politician but a bad economist. Angus Taylor is a superior economist yet not a natural politician. But the Opposition spokesman more than held his own.

Judith Sloan

commentaryCommentary

*FILE PIX* Editorial generic stock aerial view image highlighting the Housing Market in Australia after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut interest rates for the first time in over four years. Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

Pricey schemes won’t unlock barriers to home ownership

Notwithstanding the suite of government programs on offer, the housing distress that far too many Australians experience won’t be disappearing soon.

Judith Sloan

COMMENTARYNation

#BREAKING UPLOAD# NCA 2025 FEDERAL ELECTION Labor BUS. DAY 6 03/04/2025 Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the campaign trail In Victoria.Australian Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at the commonwealth office building in Melbourne on tariffs announced by US president Donald Trump. Picture: Jason Edwards / NewsWire

Trump thinks he holds the winning cards, but reality is complicated

While it’s true that countries cheat, fudge and manipulate – gosh, even the US does this – trade between countries offers win-win outcomes that improve global living standards.

Judith Sloan

COMMENTARYCommentary

18 March 2025; a photo comp of Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers for the Federal Budget 2025 Winners and Losers. Artwork by Emilia Tortorella. Sources: supplied and iStock. Ratio 4:3.

Labor’s economic logic akin to denying the law of gravity

It seems a very long time since the economic sense of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating dominated the political narrative.

Judith Sloan

commentaryCommentary

, NCA 2025 FEDERAL ELECTION Labor BUS. DAY 3 31/03/2025 Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the campaign trail In Western Australia Visiting St John of God Midland Hospital in Perth for funding announcement along with, Labor Health minister Mark Butler,, The WA Health Minister Meredith Hammat, The Labor Member for Hasluck - Tania Lawrence, Labor Candidate for Bullwinkel - Trish Cook (red jacket), Picture: Jason Edwards/NewsWire

PM can flee energy modelling, but not the mess it’s left

If we were only interested in affordable and reliable electricity, we would’ve stuck with coal and replaced the ageing plants with high-efficiency, low-emissions plants.

Judith Sloan

INQUIRERInquirer

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos - MARCH 24 2025: Minister for Finance of Australia, Katy Gallagher and Treasurer of Australia, Jim Chalmers with the 2025-26 Budget papers at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Sunny Jim fails to save for rainy days ahead

While there is a small degree of relief, there is no real reform and absolutely no repair.

Judith Sloan

COMMENTARYCommentary

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos MARCH 11, 2022: Petrol prices around Adelaide - Shell petrol station on West Terrace in the CBD. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Naomi Jellicoe

Politics v economics: Why Dutton is cutting fuel excise

The danger is these relief measures can get out of hand, blowing up the budget and being counter-productive.

Judith Sloan

COMMENTARYNation

One trillion reasons to demolish Jim’s ‘facts’ and fiction

The estimates on gross debt are alarming. Recall the days when Chalmers would tease then treasurer Josh Frydenberg about reaching $1 trillion in debt. This year’s budget predicts this figure will now be reached under Chalmers’s watch.

Judith Sloan

CommentaryCommentary

Travellers are seen at Overseas Arrivals and Departures (OAD) at Sydney's International Airport in Sydney, Monday, December 17, 2018. (AAP Image/Brendan Esposito) NO ARCHIVING

Do the maths; high migration isn’t an economic positive

Sadly, both sides of politics have been captured by pro-immigration lobby groups; property developers, universities, big business, the bureaucracy, some ethnic groups and show little inclination to significantly reduce migrant intakes.

Judith Sloan

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/judith-sloan