Sales strengthen as growth continues for retailers

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CBA Business Spending index The Commonwealth Bank Business Sales Indicator (BSI) was unchanged in trend terms in December after previously falling for twelve straight months. But the weakness remains narrowly

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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

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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

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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

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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

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Significant uncertainty ahead for investors after Queensland floods

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Insurance, transport and retail worst sectors hit The Australian insurance sector is one of a number of sectors that faces a significantly uncertain outlook following the devastating Queensland floods, according

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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

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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

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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

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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;

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