Dollars & Sense
Dollars & Sense demystifies the latest economic figures, how they impact you and what they can tell us about the economy, with host Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work, and author of Guardian Australia’s Grogonomics column.
House prices aren’t just cooked, they’re deep fried
Australia’s housing market is cooked and capping international student numbers isn’t going to fix it, says Greg Jericho.
A putrid set of numbers
Australia’s “pathetic” growth figures show that the Reserve Bank went too hard with interest rate increases, says Greg Jericho.
August 2024
Cashing in on a crisis
Super profits have driven up inflation, robbing all but the wealthiest Australians, says Greg Jericho.
Pour one out for the big four banks
Australia’s big banks are among the most profitable in the world, so forcing them to compete is essential, says Greg Jericho.
Australians hate gambling ads, so why is the government tiptoeing around a ban?
A tax on the digital giants could be used to support free, public-interest journalism while implementing a total ban on gambling advertising, says Matt Grudnoff.
Rate expectations: will Australians get a rate cut for Christmas?
The Reserve Bank Governor may be keeping her cards close to her chest, but a slowing economy means a rate cut this year could still be on the table, says Greg Jericho.
Another airline is grounded – should the government buy it?
Flights in regional Australia are an essential public service, so the government could consider stepping in to support the stricken regional carrier, Rex, Greg Jericho says.
July 2024
Imports are for LOSERS! Trump’s ‘America first’ economics
Major Australian industries are vulnerable to the impacts of another US-China trade war, says Greg Jericho.
What would Trump 2.0 mean for the global economy?
The prospect of tariff hikes and higher inflation in a second Trump term has economic policymakers nervous, says Greg Jericho.
Australia wastes billions making housing more expensive
It’s not easy to screw up the housing market this badly – it’s taken Australia decades of bad policy and billions of dollars to get here, Matt Grudnoff says.
Supermarxist? Dutton and the duopoly
The prime minister joked that the Coalition is turning communist, but having strong powers to break up the Coles-Woolies duopoly is sensible economic policy, Matt Grudnoff says.
June 2024
A nuclear nothingburger
The faux-debate over nuclear energy is a distraction from the main game – reducing our emissions to address the climate crisis, says Greg Jericho.
The narrow path
At a time of major uncertainty in the economy, Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock’s honesty is refreshing, says Greg Jericho.
Pick your poison
The government is trying to strike a delicate balance in the economy, getting inflation down without sending the country into recession, says Greg Jericho.
Why our GDP is going nowhere
Near-zero economic growth is a good sign of how bad things are, says Greg Jericho.
May 2024
Walking the inflation tightrope
Inflation isn’t falling as fast as most economists want, but a rate rise now would do more harm than good, says Greg Jericho.
Poverty is a policy choice
According to the Productivity Commission, wealth inequality declined during the COVID years due to boosted government support payments. And when those payments finished, predictably inequality went back up. The overwhelming majority of gains from economic growth since the GFC have gone to the wealthiest people. On this episode, Greg Jericho discusses inequality, poverty, and government
The budget and why your wages are lagging 14 years behind
The pandemic and runaway inflation reversed more than a decade of progress on living standards in just two years – and it’s going to be a long wait for them to inch back, says Greg Jericho.
We. Do. Not. Need. A. Recession.
Calling for a ‘short recession’ as an economist is like calling for a ‘small war’ knowing you’ll never be on the frontlines, says Greg Jericho.
JobSeeker drags people into poverty, but the government could fix this today
Budgets are about choices – and successive governments have chosen to punish jobseekers, says Greg Jericho.
April 2024
What the HECS?
Annual inflation is on the way down, but rents remain high and many people’s higher education loans are growing, even after repayments, says Greg Jericho.
Backing the renewable horse
The government is under fire for trying to ‘pick winners’, but green manufacturing could be the pony to get behind, says Greg Jericho.
The market expects rates to fall – but that may be optimistic
Greg Jericho discusses the decisions facing the Reserve Bank in coming months and a new report showing that rate rises hurt Australians more than anyone in the world.
The big budget con
The budget balance usually steals the headlines on budget night, but it’s not that important, says Greg Jericho.
March 2024
Waiting for Godot (and wage-price spirals)
Despite claims by some business groups and commentators, a modest wage increase for workers isn’t going to send inflation skyrocketing, says Greg Jericho.
Too good to be true? Employment spike exceeds expectations
Unemployment dropped in a big way in February, so is the Australian economy now out of the woods?
Housing is so bad that 2020 prices look good…
Housing prices have risen so much in Australia that 2020 prices look almost reasonable.
GDPitiful
Australia’s recent gross domestic product (GDP) figures show that the economy is weak and people are struggling to keep up. So what can the federal government – and the Reserve Bank – do to help? Greg Jericho is Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work and popular columnist of Grogonomics
A Bad Case of Gas
The gas industry likes to tell us it’s vital to the Australian economy. But when people are paying more in GST for Taylor Swift merch than many companies are paying in company income tax per year, and the government collects more from HECS than the PRRT, you know something is seriously wrong. Greg Jericho is
February 2024
Wages are up! And, why non-compete clauses are bad for the economy
Wages are up over the past year, for the first time since 2021! Which means your real wage has increased as well, but by a small amount. Also this week, the Bureau of Statistics looked at restraint clauses, or non-compete clauses. So what do they mean for workers, and the economy as a whole? Lower
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