Unconventional Economist

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also Chief Economist and co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.

Lower Aussie inflation, but fewer rate cuts

The news on inflation continues to improve, following the latest benign Q2 CPI print from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). On Monday, the Westpac-Melbourne Institute (MI) monthly CPI gauge was released.

Trump’s tariffs won’t dent Australia’s economy

The Trump administration announced on Friday, Australian time, that Australia would be subject to the baseline 10% tariff.

First home buyers squeezed by soaring prices

Higher-priced properties are typically the most volatile and sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Axe falls on private college ‘visa factories’

The latest temporary visa data for Q2 2025 from the Department of Home Affairs shows that the total number of student visas on issue in Australia fell marginally to 592,342, down from 608,262 a year prior.

Australian manufacturing is dying and nobody cares

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) national accounts showed that Australia’s manufacturing sector comprised a record low share of GDP.

ACTU pushes right policy buttons

The ACTU has used its submission to the federal government’s upcoming economic roundtable to call for negative gearing and the 50% capital gains tax (CGT) concession to be restricted to a single property.

Australia has too many temporary migrants

Canada experienced a boom in temporary migrants over recent years, which helped drive up rental inflation to astonishing levels.

Victoria threatened with credit rating downgrade

S&P Global has advised the Victorian government that its credit rating will not be downgraded from ‘AA’, as it has been assured by the government that it will “control operating costs ahead of the 2026 election, deliver promised cost savings, and slow growth in debt”.

Australia is a nation of eKarens

I believe that the video-sharing platform YouTube is one of the greatest educational tools available.

“Seller’s market” will push house prices higher

Prominent Sydney real estate agent and auctioneer Tom Panos believes that Australia is moving into a “seller’s market” following a series of highly successful auction weekends.

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