Located just under an hour's drive north of Melbourne's CBD, Mickleham has seen rapid population growth as young families, priced out of inner-city housing, move to more affordable areas. However, the development has raised concerns among locals and experts alike.
Due to the sweeping closure of service centers and call centers from Dec. 25 to 27, and Jan. 1, 2025, individuals will be required to report their income early and on a new reporting date to receive payment on time.
The report identified eight groups as being particularly at high risk of multiple deprivation -- JobSeeker Payment, Parenting Payment, Disability Support Pension, or Youth Allowance, single-parent families, First Nations people, and those renting social or private housing.
This demonstrates the substantial influence that Australia's real estate market has on the people's wealth, with the average household having a net worth of AU$1.58 million.
Under Australia's consumer law, buyers are only entitled to a return or refund if the product is faulty or doesn't match the description, not if they simply change their minds.
The monthly consumer price index (CPI) increased 2.1% in the 12 months to October 2024. A more steady inflation environment was shown by the fact that this increase fell short of the 2.3% market projection.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority said in a statement it was confident the 3% buffer will help households stay afloat and repay their loans under various scenarios.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Finance Minister Katy Gallagher confirmed in a joint statement that the fund's main goal was to maximize returns, with the growth rate benchmark and risk profile remaining unchanged.
The rate of business failure increased to 5.04% in October, the highest level since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when it was 5.08%.
As underlying inflation remained "too high," RBA noted that it wanted to see consistent inflation data before considering a rate cut, to ensure any decline was sustainable.
Young Australians, aged 18 to 29, reduced their expenditure by 2% year over year in the third quarter of 2024, with significant drops in both essential (by 2.3%) and discretionary (by 1.9%) spending.
"Mortgage arrears rates have risen, but they remain low and at similar levels in Australia and the United States," Christopher Kent, assistant governor of Reserve Bank of Australia, said. "This is despite the significant rise in required mortgage payments in Australia."
Starting Jan. 1, 2026, businesses providing essential goods and services, such as groceries, fuel, banks, and utilities or health services, will be required to accept cash, with some exemptions.
Though NAB had initially predicted the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) would cut interest rates in February 2025, now, that doesn't seem like a possibility before May 2025.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed that the number of people with full-time jobs increased by 9,700 last month, while the part-time rose by by 6,200, taking the total growth to 15,900.
"The latest decision of a 3.75% wage increase paid from 1 July 2024 was lower than the September quarter 2023 increase of 5.75%," noted the ABS head of prices statistics Michelle Marquardt. "It was also lower than the commission's September quarter 2022 awarded increase of between 4.6% and 5.2%."
The vendors, who were highly reliant on Coles, Woolworths and Aldi, see their efforts dwarfed by supermarkets' tactics, forcing them to restrict their business to the domestic market, the industry's peak body told the ACCC.
Governor Michele Bullock Bullock said the RBA had reviewed some of Trump's policies, including a 60% tariff on China, but it remained uncertain whether he will implement them.
ATO data showed that the net super disparity -- the portion of existing unpaid super gap even after the recovery attempts -- has dropped from 6.7% in 2022-23 to 6.3% in 2023-24. However, the total unpaid super has increased to AU$5.2 billion this year, compared to AU$4.8 billion in the previous year.
RBA's latest decision to keep interest rates at a 12-year high of 4.35% was met with a silent market reaction, as seen by the Australian dollar's steadying around $0.6595.
While households increased their spending on groceries and healthcare, there was a 1.8% decrease in spending on new clothes and shoes, reversing the 0.2% growth reported in August.
The inquiry found that the average price of nine essential items, including penne pasta, beef mince, teabags, carrots, and Weet-Bix, at Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, and IGA across all Australian capital cities was AU$44.70. In comparison, the same items cost AU$99.38 in the four remote communities.
A handful of industry funds accounted for most of the spending, with AustralianSuper being the largest marketing spender in the 2022-23 financial year, spending a total of AU$60.2 million. Queensland-based Australian Retirement Trust ranked as the second largest spender on marketing, investing AU$41.8 million.
The company predicted that its earnings from its Australian food division, before interest and tax, to be between AU$1.48 billion and AU$1.53 billion in the December half.
Compared to Q2, Australia's inflation rate declined one percentage point in the September quarter and broadly aligned with expectations of being between 2-3%. The drop in the inflation rate is being attributed to lower fuel prices and energy bill discounts.
RBA governor Michele Bullock announced the central bank incurred a loss of AU$4.2 billion, during 2023-24, recording its fourth consecutive year of accounting losses. The bank suffered shortfalls of AU$6 billion in 2022-23, a record AU$36.7 billion in 2021-22, and AU$4.3 billion in 2020-21.
Critics of the 3% buffer said that it prevented potential borrowers from obtaining home loans because it required them to demonstrate the ability to manage a much higher mortgage than the set interest rates.
The IMF revised its 2025 forecast for Australia's consumer price index to 3.6%, a significant increase from its previous 2.8% projection.
In addition, frustrated frontline workers, combined with inefficient tools and outdated IT systems, are costing Australia an estimated AU$29.5 billion in lost productivity gains.
When asked about policy changes that could lower living costs, 64% of respondents suggested increasing competition among the major supermarkets and reducing utility costs. While, 60% called for lower medical expenses, 58% advocated for faster wage growth.
