Weekly market & economic update – 21 January 2011

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Headline developments An acceleration in Chinese economic growth in the December quarter to an estimated annualised pace of around 12% along with ongoing inflation worries have reinforced the case for... Read more continue reading

Consumer bonanza as import prices fall

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Import & export prices Prices of imported goods slumped by 3.8 per cent in the December quarter, driven largely by the appreciation of the Australian dollar. Import prices are 1.0... Read more continue reading

The implications of the floods for Australia

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Key points Like the fires of two years ago the floods have wrought terrible tragedy in terms of loss of life and disruption to people’s lives. Beyond the human suffering... Read more continue reading

Investor Signposts: Week Beginning January 23 2011

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The big picture In general, investors find it an easy task to work out how the Australian sharemarket is performing. It is merely a case of looking at a benchmark... Read more continue reading

Young workers miss out in job stakes

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Latest economic news There were fewer young Australians with jobs at the end of 2010 than a year earlier. Employment for those aged between 15-19 years actually fell by 6,100... Read more continue reading

China: Robust growth and inflation moderates

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Chinese economic data Chinese economic activity picked up pace in the last three months of the year. The Chinese economy grew at a 9.8 per cent annual rate in the... Read more continue reading

Floods disaster dents confidence

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Consumer sentiment The Westpac/Melbourne Institute index of consumer confidence fell sharply in the latest month as the flood disaster in Queensland impacted sentiment. The index fell by 5.7 per cent... Read more continue reading

Floods: Weighing up the costs

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Economic impact of floods The east coast floods were caused by the La Niña weather event. La Niña will continue until at least March. El Niño and La Niña are... Read more continue reading

State of the States

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State & territory economic performance report How are Australia’s states and territories performing? CommSec has attempted to find out by analysing eight key indicators: economic growth; retail spending; equipment investment;... Read more continue reading

AMP Capital welcomes new Australian equities appointments

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AMP Capital Investors has appointed several equity investment professionals, bringing its Australian Capital Equity team to eight investment professionals focused on the Australian equities market. Joining the team are Jonas... Read more continue reading