NSW upheaval, digital giants on notice
Upheaval at the top in New South Wales
New South Wales has undergone sweeping Cabinet changes, following the resignation of Gladys Berejiklian as Premier. New Premier (and former Treasurer) Dominic Perrottet has been joined by a new Deputy Liberal Leader, Stuart Ayres, and a new Treasurer, Matt Kean. The NSW Nationals will be led by Paul Toole, who will also serve as Deputy Premier to replace the retiring John Barilaro. Planning Minister Rob Stokes will also serve as the new Minister for Transport and Roads, after Andrew Constance announced his retirement.
Digital giants warned on online regulation
Federal Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has committed to uphold Australian sovereignty in regulating national online activity. In an address to the National Press Club this week, Mr Fletcher said the Federal Government strongly believed that the rule of law needed to apply to human interactions in the so-called digital town square, just as it did with physical transactions. He said that while global digital giants may resist regulation, they would ultimately accept the rule of law if doing business in Australia – as they did with the new media bargaining code struck earlier this year.
Soaring trade surplus boosts economic hopes
Australia’s international trade surplus is continuing to surge, with a record $15 billion surplus in August. Exports rose by almost $2 billion (or four per cent) in the month, while imports fell by $500 million, or one per cent, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Rural goods, coal and mineral fuels all registered double-digit percentage increases for the month. Australia’s international trade in goods has easily surpassed pre-Covid 19 levels, but the value of trade in services remains almost 50 per cent lower. In the past 12 months, the monthly trade surplus has jumped more than $12 billion, underpinning Australia’s economic growth prospects.
Angus Taylor to head combined industry and energy portfolios
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a Cabinet reshuffle after Christian Porter stepped down as Industry Minister. In an acknowledgement of the link between industry policy and energy policy, Angus Taylor will become the new Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction. He will be assisted by new appointee, Tim Wilson. Melissa Price will add the Science and Technology portfolio to her Defence Industry role.
Job numbers fall but wages on the rise
Payroll job numbers have continued to fall across Australia, declining by 0.7 per cent in the first two weeks of September, according to ABS figures. For the period between mid-August and mid-September, payroll job numbers fell 2.1 per cent, with major falls recorded in the Australian Capital Territory (10.5 per cent) and Victoria (5.2 per cent). The level of total wages paid, however, rose by 1.8 per cent nationally since the end of August, reflecting worker shortages in certain industries.
Budget tracking ahead of forecast
Australia’s Federal Budget position for 2021-22 may be more optimistic than first predicted, according to an update from Finance Minister Simon Birmingham. For the first two months to August 31, 2021, the budget deficit was $22 billion – $6 billion less than the deficit forecast for the same period. The better-than-expected position has been boosted by tax revenue being $12 billion higher for the first two months of 2021-22, while Federal spending was $6 billion higher under the reactivated funding response to Covid-19.