It’s October and we’re all looking forward to the longer, warmer days ahead. Of course, I’m looking forward to Sunday night when the Panthers will hopefully win their 4th straight premiership – it will be a tough match, but fingers crossed.
Interest rate speculation is rife after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) kept rates on hold at 4.35% last month. Economists are now predicting it may be several months before rates fall. It’s a different story in the United States where the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by half a percentage point in September and forecast two more cuts before the end of the year.
Australia’s inflation rate fell to 2.7% in August, down from 3.5% the previous month in the lowest reading in three years. Falling petrol prices and energy bill relief helped drive the slowdown. The jobless rate remained steady in August at 4.2% with the number of unemployed people falling by 10,500 in seasonally adjusted terms.
The S&P/ASX 200 index hit an all-time high near the end of the month at 8286 points and a low of 7687 a few weeks earlier. It closed the month at a respectable 8270, up 2.2% for the month and 7.89% for the year. China’s plan to stimulate its economy has led to stronger commodity prices with mining and energy stocks the main beneficiaries.
How the times have changed – on Sunday and Monday I will be attending the Succession Asset Protection and Estate Planning Association Conference in Thailand without leaving the comfort of my desk. It used to be I would look forward to attending at least one international conference a year and then adding on a few days holiday after the event. Happy just to be at home these days. Fortunately the livestream of the conference on Sunday evening should end just before the grand final kickoff.
Go the Panthers!
