Mike's Minute: We are losing to the Australian economy

A must read for a reality check is the ABC, as in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and their exploration of the New Zealand vs Australian economy. 

Normally the ABC, like a lot of public broadcasters, tease you with a headline and end up concluding nothing so they can claim to be balanced. 

Not so in this case. Gareth Hutchens is your author, and the headline is "Inflation has fallen in NZ and Aus - but which is faring better?" 

It's always instructive to read specific comparisons, look at the wider picture, and crunch the numbers, and this piece does that. 

Boy does it do that. 

It starts with a clue - "New Zealand's economy is in recession. Australia's economy is not in recession." 

He then involves the Reserve Bank. Our cash rate peaked at 5.5% while Australia's peaked at 4.35%. 

In unemployment, New Zealand's got to 5.1% and is probably still climbing. Australia's is under 4%. 

New Zealand's labour force hasn’t grown in the past 12 months. Australia's labour force has been consistently growing for the past 12 months. 

In the past three years Australia's economy hasn’t recorded a single quarter of negative growth. 

New Zealand's economy has three quarters of zero growth and three quarters of negative growth. We've just experienced six consecutive months of negative growth. 

When it comes to the Reserve Bank the article points out the respective RB's pursued different approaches to employment, as regards their approach to inflation. 

The approach, according to the Australian Reserve Bank, was to preserve as many of the jobs that have been created in recent years as they could. 

Here's the last line in the article; "and thousands of Kiwis have revealed which strategy they prefer by buying a plane ticket to Australia". 

I think most of us could have guessed all of this. 

But put it in words, with stats and graphs and lay it bare and a more depressing, debilitating, deflating and anger-inducing set of numbers would be hard to find. 

And those of us left have, and are, living through it. 

Talk about stark. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I must read for a reality check. Is the ABC
as in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation exploration of the New
Zealand versus Australian economy. Normally, the ABC, like a lot
of public broadcasters, tease you with the headline and end
up concluding nothing that so they can claim to be balanced.
Not so in this case. Gareth Hutchins is your author.
The headline inflation has fallen in New Zealand and Australia,

(00:22):
But which is faring better? See it's always instructive to
read specific comparisons, look at the wider picture, crunch the numbers,
and this piece does that, and boy does it do that.
It starts with a clue. New Zealand's economy is in recession.
Australia's economy is not in recession. He then involves the
Reserve Bank. Our cash rate peaked at five point five percent,
Australia's peaked at four point three five percent unemployment, New

(00:44):
Zealand's got to five point one, probably still climbing. Australia's
under four percent. New Zealand's labor force hasn't grown in
the past twelve months. Is a wake up called New
Zealand's labor force hasn't grown in the past twelve months.
Australia's labor force has been consistently growing for the past
twelve months, he writes. In the past three years, Australia's
economy hasn't recorded a single quarter of negative growth. New

(01:08):
Zealand's economy has three quarters of zero growth, three quarters
of negative growth. It's just experienced six consecutive quarters of
negative growth, he writes. The Reserve Bank. The article points
out the respective rbs pursued different approaches to employment as
regards their approach to inflation, also points out that they've
got slightly different bands. We've got a one to three band,
they've got a two to three band. The approach, according

(01:29):
to the Australian ARB was to quote, preserve as many
of the jobs that have been created in recent years
as we can. Did they do that? Yes, they did.
The last line in the article you're ready for this,
and thousands of Kiwis have revealed which strategy they prefer
by buying a plane ticket to Australia. I think most
of us could have guessed basically what the article says,

(01:50):
but to put it in words with stats and graphs
and lay it bare. A more depressing, debilitating, deflating, and
anger inducing set of numbers would be hard to find.
And those of us left here you have and are
living through all of this talk about Stark. For more
from the Mic Asking Breakfast, listen live to News Talks
at B from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast

(02:12):
on iHeartRadio