How not to impose a tariff

Postal services around the world have suspended services to the United States in response to the Trump administration’s chaotic tariff policies.
On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Matt and Elinor discuss why the latest inflation data isn’t anything to panic about, the case for economy-wide price gouging laws, and why Australia Post has stopped sending many packages to the United States.
Early bird tickets for our Revenue Summit at Parliament House in Canberra – Hon. Steven Miles MP, Senator David Pocock, Kate Chaney MP, Greg Jericho and more – are available now. You can buy tickets for the early bird price of $99 – available for a limited time only.
Dead Centre: How political pragmatism is killing us by Richard Denniss is available now via the Australia Institute website.
This discussion was recorded on Thursday 28 August 2025.
Host: Matt Grudnoff, Senior Economist, the Australia Institute // @mattgrudnoff
Host: Elinor Johnston-Leek, Senior Content Producer, the Australia Institute // @elinorjohnstonleek
Show notes:
Price gouging: AGL and Origin by Dave Richardson, the Australia Institute (December 2024)
Trump’s tariffs won’t wreck Australia’s economy. But America’s could be cooked. Dollars & Sense (April 2025)
Photo: The White House/Flickr (U.S. Government work)
Theme music: Blue Dot Sessions
We’d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au.
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