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economy

Construction Costs Growth Hits 15-Year Low

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
Building Cost Growth Hits 15-Year Low
Residential construction costs growth hits 15-year low as it rose just by 0.4% in the March quarter. This is the lowest quarterly increase since 2010, according to the Cordell Construction Cost Index. As a result, annual cost growth fell from 4.0% in the December quarter to 3.4% in the March quarter. However, building costs have risen 31.3% since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, so ...
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Businesses Remain Profitable Despite Pressures

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
“Most businesses remain profitable, despite the ongoing pressures,” the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has reported in its latest Financial Stability Review. "Most large and small businesses’ profit margins are around the level recorded over the 2010s. However, our measure for small businesses is only available up to the September quarter of 2024. Additionally, the surveys suggest these bu...
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Investors to Manage Negative Cash Flow

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
Investors Weathering Cash Flow Storm
Surveys show that property investors confirm investing can be a fantastic way to build long-term wealth, but they need to prepare and learn to manage periods of negative cash flow, especially in the early years. The Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) found that 65% of investors they surveyed were negatively geared in 2024, up from 57% in 2023. PIPA chair Nicola McDouga...
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840 Cranes Operating Nationwide

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
840 Cranes Operating Nationwide
According to multinational construction group, RLB, 840 cranes are operating nationwide. Construction crane numbers remain strong across Australia despite a recent dip in building activity. With 840 cranes operating nationwide during the first quarter of 2025, the country continues its streak of 800-plus active cranes. This trend started in the first quarter of 2022. However, numbers were l...
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Inflation Continues to Ease

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
Inflation Keeps Trending Down
The latest inflation data, recorded before the USA announced its recent series of tariffs, show that inflation continues to ease, increasing the likelihood of future interest rate cuts. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the annual headline inflation rate declined from 2.5% in January to 2.4% in February, marking the seventh consecutive month it remained within the Reserve Ba...
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Job Vacancies Declined by 30.7%

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
Job Vacancies Down 30.7% From Peak
Job vacancies have declined by 30.7%. This marks a decrease in 10 out of the last 11 quarters, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Vacancies peaked at a record 474,700 in May 2022, but have since fallen to 328,900 in February 2025, a reduction of 30.7%. “However, despite the falls in job vacancies over the last two and a half years, the total number of vacancies was s...
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How Inflation is Affecting the Economy

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
Prices soaring for some items, declining for others
The national inflation rate in January was a moderate 2.5% but prices are changing at different rates and are affecting different parts of the economy, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. On the high side, prices increased by 6.5% year-on-year for education, 6.4% for alcohol & tobacco and 5.3% for insurance & financial services. On the low side, prices rose only 0.9...
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Government Aims to Protect Small Businesses

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
New protections aim to level the playing field between big & small companies
The federal government aims to protect small businesses from unfair trading practices imposed on them by larger companies. The government said, "Treasury will consult this year on the design of protections for businesses, including whether a principles-based prohibition should apply and whether specific unfair trading practices should target small businesses." Unfair practices may includ...
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Wages Increased 0.8% in the March Quarter

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
The wages of the average Australian worker increased 0.8% in the March quarter. This takes annual wages growth to 4.1%, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The industries with the biggest annual increases in wages were: Health care & social assistance: 5.3% Electricity, gas, water & waste services: 4.4% Retail trade: 4.4% Transport, postal & warehousi...
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Commercial Sales Set To Rebound

Posted on by Laze Spasevski
  Commercial sales are set to rebound as transaction activity in the Australian commercial property market appears to be trending up. However, sales activity in 2023 will almost certainly be well down on last year's results. There were $29.2 billion of sales in the office, logistics & industrial, and retail sectors during 2022, according to JLL. Which is considerably higher comp...
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