The Reserve Bank of Australia Slows the Momentum for Rate Cuts

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on March 2, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) This time around, the currency market seemed well-prepared for a rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). As luck would have it, the RBA did not cooperate. {snip} This … Read more

Australia’s Heating Housing Market Pressures Monetary Policy

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on February 11, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Australian Bureau of Statistics released its December, 2014 data on housing finance in Australia. The data show that first-time home buyers continue to decline as a percentage of all dwellings … Read more

A Minor Intervention Scare for the Australian Dollar

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on November 13, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) On November 13th (in the morning in Australia), Christopher Kent, an Assistant Governor at the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), delivered a speech discussing business cycles in Australia. The big news … Read more

Unemployment and Commodity Prices Working Against the Australian Dollar

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on August 7, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) It is probably only a matter of time before the next deep swoon in the Australian dollar (FXA). On August 7th…the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported a spike higher in … Read more

Australia’s Central Bank Is Not Overly Concerned With Having One of the Most Expensive Housing Markets In the World

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on July 6, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The IMF recently established an informative web site called “Global Housing Watch” that promises to provide quarterly updates on housing conditions around the world. The update for Q4 of 2013 shows … Read more

Monetary Policy On Cruise Control in Australia

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on May 6, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia seems to have abandoned efforts to push the Australian dollar (FXA) around. The latest monetary decision contained no surprises and looked like a near carbon copy … Read more

All the Reserve Bank of Australia Has Left Is Jawboning

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on February 4, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) made it official: the low interest rate cycle has reached a trough. In its latest Monetary Policy Decision on February 4th, the RBA concluded (emphasis … Read more

Q4 2013 Inflation Reading Removes Australia’s Scope For Lower Rates

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 22, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) Remember last September when the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) somewhat mysteriously removed the following language from its statement on monetary policy?… “The Board also judged that the inflation outlook, as … Read more

Poor Jobs Report Breaks Down Australian Dollar But Is THIS the Trough?

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 13, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported a loss of 22,600 jobs for December, 2013 while consensus expectations were for a GAIN of 10,000 jobs. The economy lost 31,600 full-time jobs … Read more

Governor Stevens Delivers: Australian Dollar Intervention “Remains Part of the Toolkit”

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on November 21, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) As I noted earlier this week, I was eagerly anticipating the release of the minutes from the last policy meeting of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and a speech by … Read more