Introduction

In 2007 China displaced Japan as Australia’s largest trading partner. In 2009 it became Australia's largest export market, and in 2017-2018 we sold A$123.3 billion worth of goods and services to China – 30.6% of our total exports. In comparison Japan, still our second most important market, only took 12.7% of our exports.

On the flip side China supplied us with 18% of our imports worth A$71.3 billion. Our total economy, as measured by GDP, was worth around A$1.9 trillion at the time, so our two-way China trade made up about 10% of our economic activity. That may not make us totally reliant on China for our economic health, but any major disruption to that trade means Australia will have many billions of dollars less to run our schools and hospitals, pay pensions and wages, and to maintain our high standard of living.

Introduction

There’s an old saying in investment circles: ‘when Wall Street sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold’. That’s not surprising. The New York Stock Exchange is by far the world’s largest, so what happens there is bound to be noticed by stock exchanges everywhere, including Australia.

It works on the upside too. A good day on the US market is more likely than not to be followed by a good day here (and elsewhere). This is particularly so when comparing similar indices such as the S&P 500, which tracks the performance of the top 500 US companies, and the S&P/ASX 200, comprising Australia’s top 200 shares.

Introduction

Recent events such as the coronavirus outbreak highlight the far-reaching effects of an epidemic. Following the initial devastation of these events, the true cost of an epidemic takes time to filter through the economy. In this article, we're taking a look at the economic impacts that epidemics and pandemics have on a local, regional and global scale.

When did the coronavirus outbreak start?

The Chinese Government alerted the World Health Organisation (WHO) of several unusual pneumonia cases in Wuhan on 31 December 2019. In early January, the WHO announced that they had identified a new strain of coronavirus — 2019-nCoV. At the time of this article's publication, there are over 81,500,000 confirmed cases and over 1,840,000 deaths worldwide.

Introduction

Interest rates have never been lower, and it’s possible they might fall even further. This creates opportunities for householders and businesses, so how can you best take advantage of low interest rates?

1. Pay off your debt more quickly
By maintaining constant repayments as interest rates fall, you’ll reduce the time it takes to pay off your loan. That’s because interest will make up less of each repayment, with more going to reduce the outstanding capital. And the great thing is that to take advantage of this strategy you don’t need to do anything. Lenders usually maintain repayments after each drop in interest rates unless you instruct them otherwise.

Introduction

COVID-19

Finally some good news on the COVID-19 front: several vaccines, all developed in record time, were being rolled out in a number of countries. While a huge step forward in bringing the pandemic under control, it comes at a time when, globally, more people are being infected with the coronavirus, and more people are dying from it than at any previous point in the pandemic. There is a long way to go before victory can be declared.

Introduction

You might think that only importers and exporters pay attention to the value of the Aussie dollar, but movements in the exchange rate affect us all.

What are the main influences on exchange rates? Ultimately it comes down to supply and demand, and that can be determined by a number of things:

Introduction

GDP. If ever there were three letters designed to make us yawn, these would be solid contenders. So why are they so frequently on the lips of politicians, economists and finance journalists? More importantly, what does GDP mean for everyday Australians like you and me? Let’s get the boring bit out of the way first.

What is GDP?

GDP stands for Gross Domestic Product, which is the value of all of the goods and services produced by a particular country. This includes, amongst other things, private and public purchases, government spending, investment, plus the value of exports minus the value of imported goods and services.

Yep, boring.

Except that GDP provides a relatively simple way of conveying the overall strength of a country’s economy which directly affects our lives.

Introduction

That $50 note in your pocket. What’s it worth? “$50,” you say, probably thinking it’s a dumb question. But is it really? Or a sheet of plastic and a bit of ink that likely cost the note printer less than a cent? Your $50 note only has value because the government declares that it does.

This lack of intrinsic value means your $50 note, and the balances of bank accounts that represent most money in circulation, might better be described as currency rather than ‘real money’. For the majority of us most of the time this distinction is of no great importance, but there are times when it matters a great deal.

Introduction

Banks have not been passing on the full reduction in the Reserve Bank’s official cash rate, but no one knows with any certainty, what the future holds for rates and to what extent.

Most predictions are that they will remain at the low end for some time to come, so while borrowers love low rates and savers curse them, what can be done to make the most of the situation?