Real Australian wages are contracting at a record rate, with the wage price index increasing in the September quarter at less than half the pace of headline inflation, official data shows. The WPI came in at an annual rate of 3.1%, far shy of the 7.3% pace of consumer price increases for the period, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) said. The gap of 4.2 percentage points eclipsed the previous… Read more
Australians wanting to use a “buy now, pay later” service like Afterpay or Zippay could soon require a thorough financial check similar to getting a credit card. It’s one way the federal government is considering an overhaul of the system in order to protect customers from getting into “debt spirals” as a result of the interest-free credit system that has little checks and balances in place. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher… Read more
Hundreds of thousands of Australians could be eligible for compensation after a major class action win against Australia’s biggest banks and their insurers. Law firm Slater and Gordon reached settlements with Commonwealth Bank (CBA), ANZ and Westpac worth a combined $126 million over consumer credit insurance which customers were sold while taking out personal loans and credit cards. Many customers who were sold insurance were ineligible or unlikely to make… Read more
The holidays are officially upon us, and chances are you’re starting to feel a bit spendy. It’s only natural. We want to spread that feeling of good cheer around by buying presents for those we love. There’s nothing wrong with that, but keep your pocketbook in mind. Nothing kills the joy of the season like a giant credit card bill come January. Keep your spending in check by following these… Read more
Nervous home buyers are holding back at auction because they are worried about their new property being worth less money in the future as the housing market falls. Buyer confusion about how much to spend and the uncertain outlook for interest rate rises have also led to a string of homes passing in and selling after. The preliminary auction clearance rate in Sydney was 66.8 per cent this weekend, its… Read more
The cost-of-living crisis has hit Aussies hard in their wallets – and now in their pantries and stomachs too, it seems. Shoppers have accused Australian food companies and supermarkets of “shrinkflation”, the practice of charging the same price for a smaller quantity or serving. Cereal and dip companies, burger chains and cafés have been gradually decreasing the size of products and meals without a price reduction, according to some Reddit sleuths. The changes have been… Read more
The holiday season is without a doubt the busiest time of year for many retail businesses. It’s a great opportunity to showcase all that you have to offer and bring in new products to see how they do. But, the excitement probably wears off when you think about managing all that inventory. Don’t despair. With a bit of preparation you can manage your inventory during the holiday season, and glide… Read more
House prices across the nation have continued to fall despite the spring selling season getting underway. Prices have fallen by 0.06 per cent nationally, with a 0.11 per cent drop in Australia‘s capital cities according to PropTrack’s Home Price Index, the smallest fall since the March peak. Hobart and Canberra led the declines with 0.46 per cent and 0.37 per cent dips respectively, followed by Sydney at 0.21 per cent.… Read more
Finally there are some facts to bring to the table in the never-ending argument between millennials, boomers and gen Xers about who had it worse. The Australian Bureau of Statistics has taken census data for baby boomers in 1991, when they were aged 25 to 39, generation X at the same age in 2006 and millennials in 2021, and compared where they were at in life. Defining generational cohorts Baby Boomers Generation… Read more
There’s a very important deadline coming up on 30th November. The ATO is urging those who haven’t yet applied for their director identification number (Director ID) to do so ASAP. The consequences for neglecting this task are severe. What is a director ID? The director ID is a mandatory 15-digit identification number given to a director who has verified their identity with the ATO. Once you have it, that is… Read more
This could be the most challenging job market that recruiters have ever faced, says Callam Pickering, APAC senior economist at Indeed Hiring Lab. It continues to be a very tight labour market in Australia, with job posting trends suggesting the labour market is only going to tighten further in the medium-term, he says. Job postings have stabilised in recent months with little movement up or down, according to Indeed’s research.… Read more
Rising inflation and cost of living pressures are expected to hit hard this Christmas but retailers are still “cautiously optimistic”. Retailers are cautiously optimistic that consumers are ready to embrace holiday spending this Christmas despite rising cost of living pressures but it will be down on previous years, according to new research. The 2022 Deloitte Retailers’ Holiday Survey assesses sentiment for the approaching Christmas period and identifies expectations for the… Read more
The Prime Minister is facing mounting pressure to scrap the stage three tax cuts with the federal budget just days away. As Labor prepares to hand down its federal budget amid recessions in other countries, many people are focused on potential changes to the stage three tax cuts. That is despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese repeatedly saying he has no plans to dump the former government’s scheme. Treasurer Jim Chalmers… Read more
As home owners continue to face interest rate hikes, small business lending has powered ahead of home mortgages as the boom growth area for banks. For the major lenders, the increase in loans up to $30 million for small and medium-sized business is running at annual growth rates above 8%, compared to 6% for home loan growth. This is the first time small business lending has outpaced home loans as the… Read more
When you start a small business, it’s usually only you behind the whole operation. You wear many hats, from CEO to clean-up crew. As you pour your heart and soul into your business and it begins to grow, the amount of work involved grows with it. Because a small business is so focused on survival, you pay a lot of attention to the bottom line. This makes a lot of… Read more
Almost half of those polled support axing stage three tax cuts while one quarter thought they should be kept. Support for the stage three tax cuts remains low with the majority of Australians backing sound economic management over sticking to election promises, a new survey suggests. The research from the Australia Institute found that high-income earners were particularly likely to support the repeal of the stage three tax cuts, despite being the… Read more
Two of Australia’s top accounting associations are urging the Albanese government to bring company reporting into the 21st century and mandate digital reporting as recommended by a parliamentary committee in February 2020. An interim report into the regulation of auditing in Australia conducted by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services recommended digital reporting be mandated to make it easier for analysts, creditors, academics and other stakeholders to use financial… Read more
The RBA’s cash rate rises to ease inflation are being offset by one group of Aussies – which could mean higher rates for a lot longer. In the more than two-and-a-half years since the pandemic first began impacting Australia, many things have changed dramatically. Things have turned out very differently than one would have expected at first glance. At the onset of the pandemic, it was widely thought that demand for… Read more
That long-established desire to have a negatively geared asset to create a tax deduction to reduce taxable income is not always the best option. It assumes the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is generously doling out tax deductions willy-nilly. It isn’t. You’re only getting a deduction because you are losing money. For example, assume you have lost $100 on a negatively geared asset and thus reduce your taxable income by $100.… Read more
A surprise public holiday to honour the life of Queen Elizabeth II could drive business to Australia’s service and hospitality sectors, but industry leaders fear for small businesses now unexpectedly balancing commitments to customers against the cost of penalty rate entitlements. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday declared September 22 will mark a national day of mourning to recognise the death of Queen Elizabeth II, who died last week aged 96. Albanese says… Read more