Why November?

Most people seemed taken by surprise, when the RBA chose to raise the cash rate to 4.75% on Cup Day this week.

However, with Oaks Day being held yesterday, I thought today would be better timing for this post.

Price Pressures

Price Pressures

Sure, the September quarter CPI had fallen to within the RBA’s target range. And yes, there is still some uncertainty overseas.

However, with industry facing capacity constraints and the mining boom heading towards previous levels … inflation is poised to accelerate during the December quarter, as wages start to rise.
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Will Australia’s Growth
Remain Strong?

Pick up any newspaper, and you’ll find most commentators saying the Resources boom is back on once again.

Also, people are pointing to China as our guiding light going forward.

But is this really true? And if so, why?

Here’s a short Video giving you a quick insight into whether there really is any substance to what we’re being told.
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“Cycles Ain’t Cycles”

Overall, Australia has sailed through the Global Financial Crisis more or less unscathed. And from all accounts, Victoria and enjoys the standout economy of all the States.

The Traditional Cycle Has Been Interrupted

Last week, you explored the traditional cycle for CBD Offices — being 18 years from peak to peak. And over that same period, Retail and Industrial properties tend to go through several cycles.

Commercial Property Cycles

However, given Australia’s privileged position within the global scene … my view is you are now at the upswing in the cycle for the Office market. In other words, you are already at the halfway point in the traditional Cycle.
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Commercial Property Cycles

How do you ever understand them?

Before talking to you about Commercial property, let’s take a quick look at Investment Cycles in general.

Investment CycleA recent AFR article contained this rather clever chart … showing an Investor’s mood at different points throughout the Cycle.

My reading would be that Australia is currently at the “Optimism” stage of the upturn — perhaps with some capital cities, a little more so than others. But generally, that’s about where most of us are at the moment.
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Election Year Blues?

It’s not just rising interest rates that the Rudd government will have to contend with, in the run-up to the next election.

The joy of the resources boom restarting brings with it certain unwanted side effects. What you will start to see is wage rate increases; plus the drawing away of materials and equipment, from other sectors within our economy.

Our Exporters

Our Exporters


Furthermore, the stronger Australian dollar will bring increased hardship to our tourism and manufacturing industries — who exported goods and services internationally.

Not to mention, our local businesses … who are finding it harder and harder to compete with cheaper imports.

China

China

Clearly, Australia doesn’t want to miss out on the extraordinary growth occurring in both China and India.

However, the real test of the government will be in how it oversees the insatiable demand for labour and capital by the mining sector — while not starving the rest of the economy of these same key business imports.

With the voice of trade unions becoming louder, the temptation for Rudd is to resort to government subsidies. But sadly, it is often the most vocal (rather than the most deserving) who seemed to benefit from these type of handouts.

Maybe the preferred option would be to allow the “fittest” to survive; and thereby cause of Australia’s overall productivity to rise in the process?

But then, it is an election year!

Nonetheless, the continued stronger demand bodes well for Commercial property during 2010 and beyond.

Your Opportunities Moving Forward?

There has been much written already about the global financial crisis.

But in layman’s terms, it occurred as a result of capital imbalances occurring throughout the world. And nowhere more so, than in America.

The principal cause can be found with the high levels of US debt-funded consumption. And in order to better understand this distortion, you might care to consider the following figures …
US Share [Read more…]

Your Handy Economic Clock

Over the years, you have probably seen various economic clocks explaining the different phases, and their relative timing.

Economic Clock

Economic Clock

Anyway, I came across this rather useful one the other day.

As you’ll see, it is actually a “Multi-asset Investment Clock” — in that you have all the sectors displayed together: Shares, Property, Resources and Interest rates.

Furthermore, if you click on it … you’ll see the clock confirms Australia is midway through its Recovery phase.

h3. And the timing for Commercial property? [Read more…]

You May be a Doubter … But I say: “Yes, we can!”

The Weekend Financial Review ran several articles, which seemed to echo many of the sentiments contained in my last blog about the Capital City Markets — but perhaps putting things a little more bluntly.

h3. Brisbane

Qeensland DebtMark Ludlow (on page 2) referred to Queensland as having moved from “boom state to gloom state” — because of its heavy reliance on resources. [Read more…]