ABS Releases more useless Stats

[Metal Head]

Now this generation, as someone else observed, wants to start where their parents finished, or preferably bigger and better. At the same time they want the holidays overseas, 2 new cars, a 42" plasma screen with all the other bits. All this goes on the mortgage!

So who's fault is that? Their's because they are pressured into it, are they naive to believe that interest rates never go up? They want to keep up with their friends and family?

Like all responsible people "they should live within their means"


Then when mortgage rates go up, it is all the governments fault that they are in the sh*t.

This logic really gets up my back how naive are people the WORLD BANKS determine how much the interest rates will be not necessarily our government. Australian rates have at least over the past 2 decades have been higher than most of the World because we are a small country (economy), so in order to attract foreign money to come here the rates have too be higher.

To those people I say, grow up and do the hard yards like our generation did.

Too bloody right

(Spoken like a true old phart!)

[dazzler]

I usually have two spare bedrooms. My two littlest kids always end up in bed with us.

And then they lay crossways

[dazzler]

Hey Metal head

Dont forget you havent finished your discussions on the other thread yet

http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=53327

[Metal Head]

Hey Metal head

Dont forget you havent finished your discussions on the other thread yet

http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=53327

Yesterdays news Dazzler - life moves on. However, I am not one generally one for saying -

" I told you so"

Btw, I got pulled up at Brisbane last year @ Maroochydore as they thought I was carrying drugs in my "carry on bag". Only to be told everything was OK after further tests. Fortunately I didn't miss the plane but I got some stern looks of fellow passengers.

[Gra]

[quote/]This logic really gets up my back how naive are people the WORLD BANKS determine how much the interest rates will be not necessarily our government. [/quote]

I will step in at this point, this is something I know a little about. The world banks have no say in what the interest rates are, they are set by either the government or an authority appointed by said Government In this country it is the reserve bank board (Whose members are appointed by guess who).

The Reserve bank in Australia has distanced itself from the Goverment as much as it can, but the government can still influence it decisions (To what degree is always debatable) .

As a postcript the unofficial word I am getting is rates wont rise, as the market in the US is too unstable and as we are heading into an election cycle, the RBA dont want to influence the outcome (Or be seen to) in any way at all. So my tip will be no rate rises till after the election unless something goes completly nuts with the numbers (There are some numbers coming out soon, they will be the big test)

[Sturdee]

As a postcript the unofficial word I am getting is rates wont rise, as the market in the US is too unstable and as we are heading into an election cycle, the RBA dont want to influence the outcome (Or be seen to) in any way at all.

Because we are already in election mode any decision either way is a factor in the election so it should be based solely on our economy.

The RBA will be damned if they do or damned if they don't, but using the US unstable economy as an excuse is unacceptable.


Peter.

[Metal Head]

This logic really gets up my back how naive are people the WORLD BANKS determine how much the interest rates will be not necessarily our government.

I will step in at this point, this is something I know a little about. The world banks have no say in what the interest rates are, they are set by either the government or an authority appointed by said Government In this country it is the reserve bank board (Whose members are appointed by guess who).

The Reserve bank in Australia has distanced itself from the Goverment as much as it can, but the government can still influence it decisions (To what degree is always debatable) .

As a postcript the unofficial word I am getting is rates wont rise, as the market in the US is too unstable and as we are heading into an election cycle, the RBA dont want to influence the outcome (Or be seen to) in any way at all. So my tip will be no rate rises till after the election unless something goes completly nuts with the numbers (There are some numbers coming out soon, they will be the big test)

Yum Yum - I didn't know humble pie tasted so good . So there we have it I, was wrong - again. I suppose I would never be any good as a politician as I admit I make mistakes. So lets say GRA that interest rates went either up or down by let's say 2% in as many months in the US, then you are saying ours wouldn't move?

What I find strange though there is all this talk of interest rises, yet a Sydney home smashed the record for the most expensive home in Australia the other day for nearly $30 million.

It appears Gra, a few economists disagree with your unofficial word.

Rates set to rise to 10-year high

By staff writers and AAP
August 07, 2007 18:30


INTEREST rates are expected to rise to a 10-year high tomorrow, adding about $50 to the average monthly mortgage. Economists expect the Reserve Bank to raise rates by 25 basis points to 6.5 per cent, stretching household budgets and forcing some people to the wall.

The last time rates were this high was in November 1996, shortly after Prime Minister John Howard took over management of the economy from the Labor Party. It would be the fifth interest rate rise since the Prime Minister’s 2004 election promise that rates would remain low under a Coalition government.

The Howard Government this week sought to shift the blame to the states, starting an advertising campaign which blames state government debt for putting upward pressure on rates.

Strong Data Pressures RBA - The central bank sets interest rates to keep inflation between 2 and 3 per cent. But months of firm economic data – including strong business conditions, high consumer sentiment, low unemployment and robust economic growth – have put upward pressure on rates.

Private debt is also growing faster than at any time since the late 1980s. The country's housing sector has been the stand out exception, with building and home sales muted following the industry's boom years.

On the world stage, a sharply rising global oil price is putting pressure on petrol prices at the bowser and, back home, Australians are being forced to fork out more money for soaring food costs and rent. The biggest contributors to inflation during the month of July were increases in the price of fruit and vegetables, bread and cereal products, and alcohol and tobacco, the TD Securities-Melbourne institute monthly inflation gauge showed.

The cost of staples has risen by more than three times the rate of inflation over the past three years. And over the June quarter, the consumer price index (CPI) rose well above economists' expectations.

Bank Repossessions Rising - Bank repossessions of properties are rising around Australia, particularly in the mortgage belts of Sydney and Melbourne, as some people fall behind on mortgage repayments. While higher income earners have been insulated from rate rises through tax cuts, lower income earners and those heavily in debt are struggling to keep up with higher living costs.

[dazzler]

Yesterdays news Dazzler - life moves on. However, I am not one generally one for saying -

" I told you so"

Btw, I got pulled up at Brisbane last year @ Maroochydore as they thought I was carrying drugs in my "carry on bag". Only to be told everything was OK after further tests. Fortunately I didn't miss the plane but I got some stern looks of fellow passengers.

Sadly I would still like you to explain how I sounded like a racist before nicking off from the other thread.

Sorry everyone, but courage of our convictions.

[Metal Head]

Oh well there we are another 0.25% rise - Gra I wouldn't always believe what your told.



Aussies richer, older, fatter and unwed

Australia has become a country of fat, single gluttons who each generate two tonnes of waste a year and live in houses that are unnecessarily large. A snapshot of Australian life shows that consumption of almost every kind is up, as are divorce rates and life expectancy - which is among the highest in the world.

The Australian Bureau Of Statistics (ABS) report Australian Social Trends 2007 paints a picture of a prosperous, well-educated nation, but one which is falling behind in health care and spending an extraordinary amount on mobile phones.

It is also a country in which Aborigines remain severely disadvantaged in almost every area. The ABS data shows that perhaps the most alarming and obvious changes in the Australian social landscape over the past decade is in the number of obese and overweight adults in the population. Around 7.4 million, or 54 per cent, of Australian men and women have serious weight problems, up from around two million in 1995. It is estimated that weight-related illness cost the nation as much as $21 billion in 2005.

One of the flow-on effects of obesity is diabetes, which is disproportionately high among Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are more than three times as likely as non-indigenous people to have diabetes and more than 10 times as likely to have kidney disease.

The ABS figures also suggest the education system is failing Aboriginal children with only 40 per cent staying at school until year 12, compared to a rate of almost 76 per cent among non-indigenous children. The social trends report points to a continuation of the trend away from marriage, concluding 31 per cent of currently single men and 26 per cent of women will never be married.

And those that do are less likely than ever to stay that way. One-third of marriages in 2000/02 could be expected to end in divorce, compared with 28 per cent in 1985/87.

The combination of more divorces and less marriages seems to also be having a negative economic impact on more and more homes. In 2003/04, 49 per cent of one-parent families with children under 15 endured both low income and low wealth, compared with 11 per cent of two-parent families with children of the same age.

One social measure that has improved is the national fertility rate which has steadily increased since 2001 to stand at 1.81 babies per woman in 2005.

Women are also remaining in the workforce in increasing numbers, the participation rate up from 74 per cent in 1990 to 76 per cent in 2005 for people aged 15-64 years.

In conjunction, perhaps not surprisingly, with the rise in the weight of the population is the leap in consumption, which in turn is linked to a steady rise in average incomes.

Real net national disposable income per capita - purchasing power - has risen by 50 per cent since 1991-92, while real net national worth - national wealth - has risen from around $215,000 per person in 1992 to more than $236,000 in 2006.

At a time when interest rates and housing affordability are high on the national agenda, the ABS has revealed that thousands are paying off houses that are too big for them.

The average Australian home has more bedrooms on average than 10 years ago, a trend which is at odds with the shrinking size of families. The ABS found that between 1994 and 2004, the average number of people per household dropped from 2.7 to 2.5, but the average number of bedrooms had risen from 2.9 to 3.

Couple-only households comprised 26 per cent of the total in 2003-04 and lone persons accounted for 25 per cent, up from 24 per cent and 23 per cent respectively in 1994-95, the report found.

While the social trends report paints a picture of a profligate and excessive population, there is one area where warnings seem to be getting through.

In 1986 Australians spent $855 a head on cigarettes and other tobacco products. In 2006 they spent only $473.

[Gra]

It appears Gra, a few economists disagree with your unofficial word.

They are economists show me two that agree on anything..... I guess we will find out later this morning

[quote/] So lets say GRA that interest rates went either up or down by let's say 2% in as many months in the US, then you are saying ours wouldn't move?
[/quote]

No I am saying that the banks don't dictate those rate. Those rates are driven from the official rate set by the central authority (In the states it is the Federal Reserve, here it is the RBA).

Looks like they announces an increase, I guess they figured they would get in in case the US market faltered during the election (As I said it is f lackey, could go either way at present).. What can I say, my boys were on the wrong side of the market today. Happens all the time

[Metal Head]

Sadly I would still like you to explain how I sounded like a racist before nicking off from the other thread.

Sorry everyone, but courage of our convictions.

Gee Dazzler it's about time you got yourself a real life and grow up in it. As it was proven by all the government people covering their bums hoping it will blow over that this was another porky pie. I said the fact was even given the lies you were still keen to see this guy go. Why would anyone in there right mind want an excellent Doctor to leave this country when there is a shortage. Thus it comes across to me (and maybe others) that you don't like this guy because of his colour, or is it you don't like Indians?

[Metal Head]

They are economists show me two that agree on anything..... I guess we will find out later this morning

Sorry Gra but you stated that the rate was going to stay as it was and it hasn't, so don't blame economists blame the person(s) who told you the porkie pie

[quote/] So lets say GRA that interest rates went either up or down by let's say 2% in as many months in the US, then you are saying ours wouldn't move?

No I am saying that the banks don't dictate those rate. Those rates are driven from the official rate set by the central authority (In the states it is the Federal Reserve, here it is the RBA).

Looks like they announces an increase, I guess they figured they would get in in case the US market faltered during the election (As I said it is f lackey, could go either way at present).. What can I say, my boys were on the wrong side of the market today. Happens all the time [/quote]

[Honorary Bloke]

Metal Head, dammit,

If you keep on pushing me to agree with Dazzler, it will be too bad. That hurts. Perhaps I can provoke you to pick on me for a while, because I'm going to have a lie down anyway. I can take it. And watch what generalisations you make about the States, because I am no sooky la la. Best have facts, my friend. Dazzler is no racist. I actually read his posts. Suggest you do the same.

[Gra]

[quote/]Sorry Gra but you stated that the rate was going to stay as it was and it hasn't, so don't blame economists blame the person(s) who told you the porkie pie[\quote]

No porkie, just the tea leaves fell the wrong way

[Metal Head]

Dazzler is no racist. I actually read his posts. Suggest you do the same.

I did HB and for that reason I said what I did. remember we are fortunate to be in a country that allows us free speech and I will ALWAYS say it the way I see it.

He, you & I are entiltled to say what we think. Just ask Jason A what it is like going around accusing fellow players are drug cheats.

I NEVER said Dazzler was a racist - how could I. I have never met the guy. I said I felt he came across (through his words) as a racist.