Weekly market & economic update

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Key events of the past week and implications It was another volatile and poor week for investment markets with the confirmation that the Fed is on track to start slowing... Read more continue reading

Australian Long/Short equity funds lag in bull market but deliver better risk/return according to Zenith

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Christopher Huang, Investment Analyst at Zenith says “It is commonly held that long/short funds are as, or less risky than the market. While we certainly believe that quality long/short funds... Read more continue reading

Dalton Nicol Reid Market Update

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In a continuation of recent trends the US market was soft last week with all asset classes weak – gold, bonds, equities and the A$. The reason ironically is that... Read more continue reading

CBA Economics: Net overseas migration continues to drive population growth

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Australia’s population rose by 94.1k (0.4%) over the December quarter 2012 to take the annual increase to 394.2k. The increase means that Australia’s population was just under 23 million at... Read more continue reading

Investor snapshot: US next phase; Population up; Retail leads jobs

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In brief: US Monetary Policy; Population; Employment by industry ¾ US Monetary Policy: Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has signalled a new phase for the US economy. But bond buying... Read more continue reading

Strongest lift in spending in six years

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Economy-wide spending has posted its strongest three-month period of growth in six years. According to the Commonwealth Bank Business Sales Indicator (BSI), spending rose by 1.0 per cent in May... Read more continue reading

CBA Economics: RBA open to further rate cuts

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Minutes of the June Reserve Bank Board meeting suggest Board members were very comfortable to keep interest rates on hold. But believed that they could do more if necessary. Reserve... Read more continue reading

Weekly market and economic update

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The volatility in share markets remained over the past week as investors continued to fret about a premature tightening by the Fed putting upwards pressure on bond yields, worries that... Read more continue reading

Youth unemployment falls to a 4½-year low

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Employment rose by 1,100 in May after rising by a revised 45,000 jobs in April (previously reported as a 50,100 rise in jobs). Economists had expected a 10,000 fall in... Read more continue reading

Stable rates boost confidence

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The Westpac/Melbourne Institute index of consumer confidence rose by 4.7 per cent in June. All five components of the index rose in June. The index is up 6.9 per cent... Read more continue reading