Garima Sinha 
Following a long period of stagnation, machinery & equipment investment has experienced strong growth since the start of 2021 (Chart 1). At the end of 2023, real expenditure was around 30% higher than the average over the past decade and had surpassed the previous peak recorded during the mining investment boom in the early 2010’s.
Housing affordability is an active topic in the media and is increasingly part of political discord. Key metrics are running at or near record levels in many markets for renters and mortgage-holders alike.
The unemployment rate spiked to 4.1% in January, suggesting the nascent deterioration in the labour market was gathering momentum. However, a good deal of the increase in unemployment in the month appears to be driven by changing seasonal patterns in job attachment.
The sustainability of a building is best measured through its carbon footprint. This has two main aspects – the embodied carbon from construction and the emissions from ongoing use.
The Albanese government announced a significant restructure of the personal income tax schedule. The stage three tax cuts legislated in 2019 and due to come into effect on 1 July will be overhauled in favour of a more progressive schedule.
Retail sales fell by 0.4% m/m in March following the boost to sales from the Taylor Swift tour in February. Sales are now up just 0.8% from a year ago and are broadly unchanged from September last year.
The Australian Government’s review of Australia’s it’s higher education system could not have come at a more opportune time. Lacklustre productivity growth, tight labour market conditions and skills shortages are major concerns for Australian businesses right now and are also factors increasing demands on Australia’s tertiary education system.
Our new ResRadar service helps subscribers understand the fundamentals driving residential markets and their impacts. The enhanced dashboard, timely reports, and associated databanks help make better investment decisions by examining the point in the residential market in each city and further movement, as well as identifying differences in the cycles across cities with high granularity.
The combined capital city median all-dwelling price reached $946,000 in December quarter 2023 (+7% y/y). Resilient demand (backed by strong population growth), alongside low listing inventory helped generate competition and price growth. Momentum has been sustained into 2024, with 1.5% q/q growth estimated for Q1.
It was fantastic to welcome our esteemed clients and guests to our economic forecasting conference in Sydney, Melbourne and online.
The Australian construction sector is facing a challenging period as costs and capacity constrain activity levels.
The run up in interest rates has provided a drag for all asset classes, but other cyclical and structural drivers are becoming more prominent in determining performance.
The Australian economy is enduring a policy-induced slowdown. Entering 2024, both fiscal and monetary policy are at or close to the peak drag they will impose on the economy in this cycle.
Adrian Cooper set out the key factors that will drive the economic outlook for 2024 and beyond, including how long the current economic slowdown is likely to last, how quickly underlying inflationary pressures will ease, and the implications for interest rates and financial markets.
We’ve taken stock of Australia’s journey towards net zero and the good news is that emissions are dropping. The bad news is that emissions aren’t dropping fast enough.
Calendar 2024 marks a turning point in the construction and infrastructure industry in Australia, with total construction work done expected to fall in real terms through the year for the first time since 2020.
Oxford Economics Australia was engaged by the Department of Education to provide an evidence base for tertiary qualification demand over the next 3 decades to support the Australian Universities Accord into the higher education sector. This analysis was critical in enabling the Accord to develop attainment and participation targets as part of its recommendations.
Oxford Economics Australia was engaged by the Property Council of Australia to undertake a study into the economic importance of the industrial and logistics sector in Australia by quantifying the value of goods flowing through industrial assets. Our work estimated that $1.2 trillion worth of goods flowed through industrial assets in FY22.
The focus on green office buildings and sustainability is being driven by both government targets to achieve net zero and increasing corporate and investor focus on environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) considerations and compliance.
Engineering Construction in Australian Executive Summary
