Category Archives: Interest rates

Australia news live: Murray Watt ‘concerned’ at Iran reaction to ambassador’s social media posts; children removed from AI image database

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IRNA said the foreign ministry summoned the Australian ambassador Ian McConville to Tehran, and condemned the publication of photos on social media. Follow today’s news live

Tehan responds to Asio boss’s accusation his comments on Palestinians have been ‘distorted’

Dan Tehan was also asked about comments from Asio boss Mike Burgess, who used an interview with the ABC’s 7.30 program on Tuesday to hit back at people who had “distorted” what he had previously said about the security vetting process for Palestinians seeking to come to Australia.

I won’t talk about what Mike Burgess may or may not be talking about when he says that. As you know, we had the prime minister also leave an important sentence out of what Mike Burgess said in the parliament, which basically distorted what Mike Burgess was saying. But I’ll leave that up to Mike Burgess, because our issue has never been with [him]. Our issue is with the prime minister …

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Paris Olympics gives eurozone economic boost after rise in spending

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French service sector drives growth but experts warn strong figures mask disappointing performance elsewhere

The Paris Olympics have provided a boost to the eurozone economy after a sharp rise in spending as athletes and spectators descended on the French capital for the summer sporting event.

Figures from a closely watched survey of businesses showed monthly French private sector output rose to its highest level in 17 months in August.

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Gold prices hit record high amid prospect of US interest rate cuts

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Spot price increases to $2,522.99, with record run meaning standard gold bar is worth more than $1m

Gold prices have hit a fresh high as increasing hopes of US interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve prompted investors to buy more of the precious metal.

The spot price of gold rose to a record $2,522.99 (£1,941.69) on Tuesday morning, up 0.7% on the day. Gold bars generally weigh 400 troy ounces (12.4kg), so a standard gold bar is now worth more than $1m.

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Interest rate cut fuels immediate upturn in UK property market

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Figures from Rightmove show inquiries to estate agents since 1 August up 19% compared with a year ago

The first Bank of England rate cut in four years has triggered an immediate upturn in the UK property market, as cheaper mortgages prompt interest among buyers and drive up house prices.

Figures from the property website Rightmove show the number of potential buyers contacting estate agents about homes for sale since 1 August jumped by 19% compared with the same time a year ago. Contacts in July were up 11% on the previous year.

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Australia’s productivity riddle – and what it might mean for interest rates

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Michele Bullock keeps telling us productivity is flatlining. How it changes may well determine if the Reserve Bank will tolerate wage rises beyond 3%

If the Reserve Bank’s GDP forecasts about the Australian economy are right, we should be close to a nadir with a sustainable upswing on the way – provided we can get more efficient at what we do.

Productivity growth – a concept that quickens the pulse of economists and almost nobody else – has slowed in Australia and most other developed nations for years.

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Australia news live: Palaszczuk appointed to Australia Post board; Shorten says Dutton ‘implying all Gazans are terrorists’

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Palaszczuk, who retired from politics in December after almost nine years as QLD premier, will serve a three-year term as a non-executive director. Follow today’s news headlines live

‘We have to have a constant reminder’

The committee also called for a culturally appropriate and nationally significant recognition and remembrance of murdered and disappeared First Nations women and children. Dorinda Cox said this would be “significant” if the government accepted the recommendation:

It would … have some permanent features to remind us the role that history has played for missing and murdered or disappeared women and children and First Nations women and children in this country, because there’s a story there that needs to be told, and we have to have a constant reminder.

Like we do … with the Australian war memorial of the safety that we have as a country, but also that this part of our history – this is now ingrained in and sketched into. And if we want to continue to work on this and continue to maintain safety for women and children and the most vulnerable, which is First Nations – as we know, we’re in an emergency for all women, but First Nations women and children are at the front of that – we have to have some permanent features, otherwise we become invisible.

What we hear too often is that this is a state and territory problem. States are responsible for their police forces, in particular … We have to centre our approaches and our outcomes in [addressing these issues] and we have to look at the culture of the organisations, such as police.

There’s lots of reporting on the media in relation to the attitudes of police across Australia, and that has to get better, but we have to have a measure against that – we can’t just put in the attorney general [to] have a chat to the police ministers, and nothing changes … Because if we don’t look at this in a way of wanting change, nothing ever changes.

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Australians’ mortgage payments hit high not seen since before GFC, data shows

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The average mortgage holder is parting with more than a fifth of their pre-tax income, double what they were spending in the 90s

Mortgage holders are spending well over 20% of their pre-tax income on their loans, representing one of the highest levels on record, data compiled by Commonwealth Bank shows.

It has rocketed in recent years amid rising interest rates and high living costs to a level last seen two decades ago when frothy property prices took hold before the 2008 global financial crisis.

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Battle against UK inflation is far from over, says Bank of England policymaker

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Catherine Mann says Britain should not be ‘seduced’ by price rises easing to the BoE’s target

The UK should not be “seduced” into thinking the battle to calm inflation is over despite price rises easing to the Bank of England’s target, according to an interest rate setter at the central bank.

Catherine Mann, a member of the Bank’s monetary policy committee, said the underlying price pressures in the economy remain strong and showed that the central bank needed to take a tough stance when it sets interest rates.

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Jobs market and pay growth are cooling off, large UK employers and recruiters warn

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Survey reveals net fall in permanent jobs last month amid lengthening slowdown in employment market

The UK’s largest employers have warned the jobs market is cooling amid a slowdown in wage growth in July and a fall in vacancies, extending an almost two-year downturn in hiring demand for permanent staff.

Figures from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and the accountancy firm KPMG showed a fall in permanent staff placements in July as large employers made more redundancies and hired fewer new starters.

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UK recovery ‘will accelerate and force Bank to keep interest rates higher for longer’

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Niesr forecasts raise doubts over chance of further cuts by Bank of England before end of year

The UK’s economic recovery will accelerate over the next year, forcing the Bank of England to keep interest rates higher for longer, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (Niesr).

Signalling that bets on further interest rate cuts before the end of the year could be misplaced, the thinktank said a modest economic recovery and the threat from persistent inflationary trends should make the central bank more cautious about reducing the cost of borrowing.

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Anyone hoping for lower interest rates any time soon will be dismayed by RBA chief’s media conference

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Governor Michele Bullock makes clear any expectation of interest rate cuts this year ‘not aligned’ with bank’s present thinking

Those hoping for lower interest rates soon – whether stressed borrowers or those in the Albanese government itching for an early election – would have been dismayed by the Reserve Bank of Australia governor Michele Bullock’s media conference on Tuesday.

The RBA board had just wrapped up the eighth meeting under her leadership and considered just two options for its key interest rate: “hold for some time” or another rate hike. A rate cut was not up for discussion.

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Australia news live: Wong ‘deeply concerned’ about escalation in Middle East; RBA interest rate decision due today

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Reserve bank’s two-day August meeting likely to leave key interest rate unchanged for a sixth straight gathering. Follow the day’s news live

Australia will join the US Global Entry program in 2025, creating an easier pathway for the hundreds of thousands of Australians who visit the country each year.

Eligible Australians who sign up for the program would benefit from streamlined and expedited immigration and customs clearance channels on arrival into the US, a statement from the foreign minister, Penny Wong, says.

Joining the Global Entry program is a mark of the closeness and the strength of the relationship between our two countries.

The foundation of the friendship between Australia and United States is the friendship between our people. This program will deepen these links and make it easier to foster greater commercial ties.

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Sun, sea and sales … Britain’s delayed summer arrives to thaw the retail chill

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After a difficult period on the high street, base rates are falling, temperatures are rising and things are looking up

It’s been a second cruel summer in a row for retailers and the hospitality business, but a more prolonged spell of warmth – and the first cut in interest rates in more than four years – may finally heat up the market, if it’s not too late.

From Argos paddling pools and outdoor furniture at garden centres to Heineken beer and Unilever’s ice-cream brands, sales have been dampened by poor weather, which has added to the pressure from high interest rates and energy bills. Sales volumes were down in June and July in the UK, according to the latest CBI distributive trades survey, with retailers expecting more falls in August.

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Don’t be fooled by the interest rate cut – higher rates are here to stay

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Mortgage payers and business owners vainly hope cut to 5% signals return to pre-pandemic era of cheap borrowing

Mortgage payers and business owners will be hopeful that a cut in interest rates to 5% by the Bank of England this week signals a return to the pre-pandemic era of low borrowing costs.

Unless much lower interest bills arrive soon, thousands of homeowners and businesses could be forced to sell up.

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Fear of US recession rattles global markets as tech shares fall

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Europe’s main indices all decline and Japanese equities suffer worst day since 2020 while gold hits fresh record

Stock markets in Europe, Asia and New York tumbled on Friday as fears of a US economic slump grew and technology shares were hit by underwhelming earnings.

Concerns that the US could be sliding towards a recession spurred a global sell-off, which accelerated after a poor employment report on Friday showed that the US jobs market was cooling fast, pushing up the unemployment rate.

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Relief for borrowers as UK interest rates cut but little sign big reductions to come

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Incremental cuts likely over two to three years with rates expected to stay well above pre-Covid levels of 0.75%

Borrowers will breathe a collective sigh of relief. The Bank of England has cut interest rates by a quarter point to 5% and major lenders are shaving their best-buy mortgage offers in response.

Those wanting to get on the housing ladder should find property slightly more affordable after the cut, which ends a year of ultra-high borrowing costs and is the first rate cut in more than four years.

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Bank of England cuts interest rates to 5% in first reduction since March 2020

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Committee voted by five votes to four in favour of cut as governor says inflationary pressures have eased enough

The Bank of England has cut interest rates for the first time since the start of the Covid pandemic, moving to ease the pressure on households after ratcheting up borrowing costs to combat the worst inflation shock in four decades.

In a finely balanced decision after holding borrowing costs at the highest level since the 2008 financial crisis for a year, the Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) voted by a narrow majority to cut its base rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 5%.

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Australia news live: Coalition claims Labor education reforms a ‘school funding war’; NZ bushwalker’s body recovered from Tasmania hiking trail

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Follow the day’s news live

Murray Watt says advice needed from administrators to determine government support amid administration

Murray Watt, the newly-appointed minister for workplace relations, also weighed in on the Rex Airlines administration on ABC RN just earlier.

In terms of equity stakes or other financial government support, we’ll make those decisions once the situation becomes clearer through the administrator.

This would only be activated if the company is unable to repay entitlements to any workers who are retrenched, and let’s hope it may not get to that.

But also, our department would be providing employment support to workers who do lose their job to ensure that they can get back into work as quickly as possible.

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Housing approvals fall to lowest level in 12 years despite Labor’s pledge of 1.2m new homes

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Approved dwellings drop 6.5% in June amid high interest rates and building costs as CoreLogic rues ‘dismal result’

New dwelling approvals in Australia have sunk to their lowest in 12 years, as developers battle high interest rates and rising labour and material costs.

For the year to June, 162,892 houses and apartments secured approval, down 8.5% on the previous year and the least since 2011-12, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Tuesday.

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Soaring government debt could roil global financial markets, warns BIS head

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Agustín Carstens says world economy on course for ‘smooth landing’ after inflation but political turmoil poses risk

Rising government debt levels could disturb global financial markets, the head of the body that advises central banks said on Sunday before France’s high-stakes parliamentary elections.

Agustín Carstens, the general manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), said the world economy was on course for a “smooth landing” from the inflation crisis, but he warned that policymakers, especially politicians, needed to be careful.

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