Leith van Onselen

Melbourne

Chief Economist and Co-founder at MacroBusiness

Co-founder and chief economist of https://t.co/n1Y9EtEtgk. Interested in all things economic & financial. Catch my interviews on YouTube @leithvo

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Articles

New Zealand is an 'economic basket case'

1 week ago | share.google | Leith van Onselen

New Zealand’s economy is a basket case. Consider the following data points, many of which come from Justin Fabo from Antipodean Macro. The following chart of national accounts data to Q4 2024 shows that New Zealand has experienced a sharp decline in GDP and national income. More recent data suggests that the economy remains moribund.
Aussie renter fights back!

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

For years, Macro Business has sounded the alarm about Australia’s immigration-driven housing crisis. The data is indisputable. Australia’s rental affordability has plummeted to a record low, with households forced to devote a record portion of their income to rent a home. AdvertisementRents have risen about 50% nationwide since the pandemic’s beginning, driving the rental affordability collapse.
Easter long weekend links and media appearances

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

International Reading:Stock Market Plummets as Fed Chair Powell Gives Dire Warning: Donald Trump’s policies are about to destroy the economy.
Aussie housing market stalls awaiting rate cuts

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

CoreLogic released its final auction results for last weekend. The clearance rate was just 59.9% nationally, the second time in three weeks it has been below 60%. The following chart plots the monthly average final auction clearance rate across the major markets. AdvertisementAs you can see, the decline in the national final clearance rate has been driven by Sydney, with Melbourne’s falling by a smaller amount.
Labor's university bias will worsen skills shortages

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

The Albanese government’s Australian Universities Accord Final Report set a target of 55% of young Australians having a university degree by 2050. The report states that to meet its 55% university attainment target, “the system will need to more than double the number of Commonwealth-supported students in universities from 860,000 currently to 1.8 million by 2050”. MacroBusiness has always argued that too many young Australians are studying at university instead of TAFE and vocational education.
Aussie rental affordability hits fresh low

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

At the end of 2024, CoreLogic reported that rental affordability hit a record low, with the median-income household required to spend 33% of their income to rent the median home. Last month’s rental affordability report from PropTrack also showed that households at the end of 2024 could afford to rent the smallest share of advertised rentals since at least 2008, when its records began.
Job market leaves door open for rate cuts

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released its March labour force report, which was steady as she goes. There were 32,230 jobs created over the month, below economists’ expectations of a 40,000 increase. The national unemployment rate remained fairly steady at 4.1% thanks to a slight increase in the participation rate. The underemployment rate was also flat. AdvertisementHowever, the number of hours worked fell by 0.3% and it has been falling for three consecutive months.
Posh Teal MP gaslights on housing, environment

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

Is there a bigger gaslighter in Australian politics than Teals MP for Wentworth, Allegra Spender? The self-styled climate crusader inherited a luxury Woollahra mega-mansion worth tens of millions of dollars:She has also owns a lovely weekender at Pittwater:AdvertisementThe full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers$1 for your first month, then:Cancel at any time through our billing provider, StripeLeith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super.
Victorians 'snookered' by 'railway to nowhere'

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

It is sounding like Groundhog Day for Victorians. When Labor came to government in Victoria in 2014, it immediately cancelled the East-West Link project, which cost taxpayers $1.1 billion in compensation. Last year, Labor cancelled the Commonwealth Games, which cost Victorian taxpayers $600 million in compensation.
Australia's job market 'structurally weak'

2 months ago | macrobusiness.com.au | Leith van Onselen

Seek released its latest employment report for Australia, which suggests the job market is deteriorating. The number of jobs advertised on Seek fell by 3.0% in March and was 12.8% lower year-over-year. Ad volumes declined in every state and territory. The full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers$1 for your first month, then:Cancel at any time through our billing provider, StripeLeith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super.