Eureka Street

Keywords: Economist

AUSTRALIA

Coles, Woolies and the battle for the basket
- Claire Heaney
- 13 December 2024
For years, Coles and Woolworths have been accused of squeezing both producers and shoppers in equal measure. With new regulatory changes on the horizon and a web of inquiries underway, the supermarket duopoly finds itself under unprecedented scrutiny. But will these reforms actually lower grocery bills?
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ECONOMICS

The trouble with a shrinking population
- David James
- 11 December 2024
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink predicts AI and shrinking populations will bring higher living standards without growth. But his optimism overlooks a critical flaw: conflating productivity, efficiency, and the true cost of 'growth.' With economic foundations shifting, the future demands a radical rethinking of capitalism’s purpose and the systems driving it.
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ENVIRONMENT

Can an economy prosper without endless growth?
- Phil Jones
- 28 November 2024
1 Comment
Infinite economic growth on a finite planet is a paradox we can no longer ignore. As environmental crises deepen, solutions like the Steady State Economy offer a roadmap to balance sustainability and prosperity. Yet, transitioning from growth-centric systems raises hard questions: Can we create an economy that values life over profit?
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AUSTRALIA

Priced out of parenthood: How Australia's housing crisis is lowering the birthrate
- David James
- 24 October 2024
3 Comments
Soaring property prices and declining fertility rates are entwined in a feedback loop, threatening long-term economic stagnation. As younger Australians are priced out of the market, many are delaying or forgoing parenthood, leading to an increasingly divided and unsustainable society.
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INTERNATIONAL

The two American freedoms
- Sarah Klenbort
- 21 August 2024
2 Comments
For a nation ‘conceived in liberty’, much of how this U.S. election will play out will hinge on different understandings of the word ‘freedom’, a term that has two distinct and separate meanings depending on whether the person you’re asking votes red or blue.
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ECONOMICS

Surge in protectionism creates new era of global trade
- David James
- 06 August 2024
1 Comment
In a world increasingly divided by geopolitical tensions, a new wave of protectionism is reshaping global trade. As nations turn inward, once-dominant economic models are being dismantled and new strategies are emerging. Is Australia prepared?
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AUSTRALIA

The Productivity Commission's magical thinking
- Michael McVeigh
- 25 July 2024
2 Comments
While proposing broader access to tax deductibility for some charities, the Productivity Commission's new report on charitable giving suggests removing benefits for religious entities. This raises serious questions about the role of religion in fostering charitable giving and the potential consequences of these reforms for Australia's charitable landscape.
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AUSTRALIA

Budget balancing act fails working poor
- David Halliday
- 23 May 2024
2 Comments
In light of the gains made in lifting people out of poverty during the pandemic, it seems critics are justified in viewing this year’s budget with more than a little disappointment. I wonder, when it comes to the federal budget, who are we trying to serve?
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AUSTRALIA

Australia's dysfunctional housing quagmire
- Peter Mares
- 12 April 2024
1 Comment
The ABC’s recent Q+A housing special left many questions unasked and unanswered. Labor, Coalition and Green MPs all say they want more people to be able to buy their own homes. The most obvious way to achieve that would be to reduce the price of housing. Yet no politician will make that an explicit policy aim.
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ECONOMICS

Review: The Shortest History of Economics
- David James
- 22 March 2024
Economics may be useless for forecasting, and its assertions can be overly simplistic. But it is a language that should be understood, and here is a good place to start. In simple and clear prose, Leigh spans the history of human economic activity, beginning in prehistoric times and ending with the modern day.
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ECONOMICS

The economy is in worse shape than you think
- David James
- 07 March 2024
4 Comments
The aggregate picture of the economy may seem healthy enough after two years of heavy immigration, over 800,000, and the return of students and tourists. But the elephant in the room remains. Australia is a two-tiered society sharply divided between people who own homes and people who do not. The generational divide is worsening.
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AUSTRALIA

We need a real conversation about tax reform
- Joe Zabar
- 12 February 2024
1 Comment
Much of the discussion about tax reform is about the mechanisms of collection; around changes to things like negative gearing, stamp duty, land tax, capital gains tax, and superannuation. But what is missing is a statement of values about what we expect our tax system to fund.
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Keywords: Economist