Pitch Engine

Rates rise to 1.35% – and there's no stopping now the RBA's on a mission to whip inflation

ShutterstockThere was no suprise in the board of the Reserve Bank of Australia lifting interest rates at its July meeting. The only question was by how much.Would it be a “regular&rdqu...

How Australia's gig workers may remain contractors under Labor's reforms

Shutterstock, CC BY-SAUber Australia’s historic agreement with the Transport Workers’ Union, on the need to regulate the gig economy, is the first step in fundamental reform of g...

Cryptocurrencies are great for gambling – but lousy at liberating our money from big central banks

ShutterstockThe dream that decentralised finance – or “DeFi” – can free the monetary system from the clutches of governments and banks has helped launch 20,000 crypto...

Regional towns are at risk of being wiped out by the move to net-zero. Here's their best chance for survival

Mackay Regional CouncilAustralia’s mining and heavy industry sectors are on the cusp of a revolution as the world shifts to net-zero. Demand for traditional industrial commodities &nda...

Sky-high mortgages, 7.1% inflation, and a 20% chance of recession. How the Conversation's panel sees the year ahead

Wes Mountain/The Conversation, CC BY-NDHomeowners will face mortgage rates near 5.5% in a little over a year, according to a survey of 22 leading Australian economists. The Conversation&rsqu...

1970s-style stagflation now playing on central bankers' minds

Shutterstock“Stagflation” is an ugly word for an ugly situation – the unpleasant combination of economic stagnation and inflation. The last time the world experienced it wa...