The mainstream Western media and global, alternative media outlets have been delivering a remarkable converging stream of blistering commentary since 2 April on what is now widely called, even by The Economist, Trump’s tariff tantrum. (more…)
Category: Economy
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Who will better manage the economy: Labor or the Coalition?
People are being asked to vote for the Coalition on the grounds that it is better at managing the economy. But the current evidence does not back up that claim. (more…)
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The election and the social determinants of health
The Social Determinants of Health are the conditions in which we work, live, and play. We, as a society, choose these conditions and/or choose not to change them. They play at least as important a role in health outcomes as access to care. (more…)
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Chinese president rallies neighbours as US tariffs imposed
From 14 to 18 April, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia conveyed a clear message: China’s engagement with Southeast Asia is rooted not merely in trade and infrastructure, but also mutual respect, strategic trust, and a shared vision for regional stability and prosperity. (more…)
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Housing affordability: Which party has better policies?
The housing policies announced in this election by both the Labor and Coalition Parties are seriously flawed. (more…)
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Trump: a ridiculous ego and incredibly ignorant
The analysis underpinning Donald Trump’s tariff policy is fatally flawed. Thus, it will fail to achieve its objective of restoring the living standards of his MAGA supporters. (more…)
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Xi pushes for fair trade after Trump tariffs land
After President Donald Trump’s decision to exempt selected electronic goods from tariffs, the gloves are temporarily off between Washington and Beijing. However, though some sanity has returned to the White House, the damage has already been done. (more…)
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The Trump effect is a wrecking ball, and we’re in the blast zone
As the US president declares victory at every turn, he will leave behind a changed world. The implications for Australia are profound. (more…)
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Memo Dutton: Good economic managers don’t try to panic the punters
A problem in economics is that you can’t use the economy to experiment. (more…)
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When elephants clash: The strategic logic behind Trump’s tariffs and China’s response
The world is mesmerised — and unsettled — by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs. (more…)
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In a broken world, China-Japan-Korea co-operation is Asia’s backbone
By blending economic might, technological prowess and cultural bonds, co-operation can be elevated into a transformative, inspiring force. (more…)
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Why cap the number of university students from abroad?
Having been unable to pass legislation, the Albanese Labor Government (as it likes to be called) decided in 2024 to use the “slow student visa process” to reduce international student numbers because of the problems they cause in taking houses and jobs from Australians. (more…)
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America’s trade revolution: From architect to antagonist
Donald Trump called it liberation day, the day he chose to announce tariffs on most countries around the world. But there will be no liveration for Americans who will end up paying grossly inflated prices for goods from abroad. (more…)
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Sherlock Holmes investigates the wages explosion that never was
I like to imagine that, if Arthur Conan Doyle were still alive, and had turned his creation, Sherlock Holmes, to solving the economic mysteries of the 21st century, he would have written this conversation: (more…)
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How an imaginary expert crashed the world economy
On 16 December 1773, the Boston Tea Party (a protest against de facto tariffs on imports) marked the start of the American colonies’ liberation from British rule. (more…)
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US tariff policies strengthening China’s position in Asia
In geopolitics, there are no permanent friends or enemies, but there are permanent interests. While many countries in Southeast Asia have tried to maintain their economic ties with the US and China, President Donald Trump’s economic and tariff plans are inadvertently helping China strengthen its position in Asia. (more…)
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Build, baby, build! But that won’t fix it all
Australia is spending billions trying and still failing to get people into decent homes they can afford. Some more radical options could be on the table. (more…)
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The mother of all own goals?
Following the White House announcement of the “Liberation Day” tariffs, Andrew Tillett, writing in The Australian Financial Review, argued that, “Trump just gave China a free kick to tilt Asia in its favour”. (paywall) At Foreign Policy, the deputy editor, Amelia Lester, was wondering, at the same time, “Are Tariffs the End of the Australia-US Friendship”.(paywall) (more…)
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AUKUS on track? No, Australia needs Plan B now
Last Monday’s AUKUS Security forum at the National Press Club heard arguments of those seeking to support the status quo. It was argued that criticism undermines AUKUS and risks turning the possibility that the US will not be able to spare Virginia class SSNs for sale to Australia from an ‘if’ to certainty. (more…)
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The stock market: an instantaneous referendum
Large movements in the stock market can cause unexpected events beyond it to happen very quickly. (more…)
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Trump’s tariffs deliver a harsh truth for Australia
Too little thought has been given to the future of the Australian economy against the backdrop of a protectionist America. (more…)
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US LNG crippled as Australia seizes US$1.5b trade overnight
What happens when the world’s second-largest economy suddenly pulls the plug on billions of dollars in US energy exports without warning, without negotiation and without a single public signal? You get a global energy market in shock and Washington scrambling for answers. (more…)
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Trump’s trade war is bad, but how bad is up to the rest of us
At last, we know enough about US President Donald Trump’s opening move on tariffs to start thinking about what it all means. By imposing tariffs on America’s imports, he’s shot his economy in the foot, but the rest of the world decides how bad it’s likely to be by what we do in response. (more…)
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Trump’s tariffs appear to be misdirected
President Donald Trump has said his recent raft of tariff measures amounted to “Liberation Day” for US traders and not a fatal blow for a global trading system that has served international commerce well for decades following the turbulence that existed prior to and up to the Second World War in the early 1940s. (more…)
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Brexit for the US: Trump’s tariffs are the sign of a nation in decline
Pop quiz: which country is the world’s leading producer of soybeans? Instinct might say China, or perhaps Japan, given the traditional centrality of soy to East Asian cuisine. (more…)
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Trump’s absurd trade policies will impoverish Americans and harm the world
US President Donald Trump is trashing the world trade system over a basic economic fallacy. He wrongly claims that America’s trade deficit is caused by the rest of the world ripping off the US, repeatedly stating things such as, “Over the decades, they ripped us off like no country has never been ripped off in history…” (more…)
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AUKUS – the bucktooth cousin hidden in election blather
In French, buck teeth are called dents à l’anglaise, literally “English teeth”. Stay with me. The connection to the old dart, France, and the dishonourable origins of AUKUS will be revealed. (more…)
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How Xi woos world business leaders as Trump intensifies trade war
On the morning of Friday, 28 March, Xi Jinping met representatives of the international business community at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (more…)
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Dutton wants to know if you’re better off now. It’s a trick question
For most people, the simple answer to Peter Dutton’s repeated question — are you better off today than you were three years ago? — is “no, I’m not”. (more…)
