Digital Finance Analytics (DFA) Blog

The RBA has held the cash rate at a 13-year high for more than a year, awaiting further evidence that inflation is irreversibly back to its 2 per cent to 3 per cent target. Markets since Mr Trump returned to the White House are on a roller-coaster ride as I discussed on my live show … Continue reading "RBA Rate Cut Not A Done Deal Yet, But…"

The New Zealand unemployment rate continues to climb, reaching 5.1% in the December 2024 quarter, according to the latest Stats NZ figures – the highest level it’s been since 2020. It’s up from 4.8% in the September 2024 quarter. Men accounted for 85% of the annual decrease in employment, reflecting substantial falls in the male-dominated … Continue reading "Kiwi Unemployment Rate Rises To 5.1%, Highest Since 2020!"

With Parliament back after the summer break, if Parliamentary Question Time anything to go by, the issue of costs of living pressures will be front and centre of the upcoming campaigns. Worth reflecting how effective Trump proved to be in the US asking the question, are you better off now, or previously, Of course words … Continue reading "Will Cost Of Living Be The Epicentre Of The Upcoming Election?"

This is an edited live discussion with Damien Klassen, Head of Investments at Nucleus Wealth and Walk The World Funds. The world has changed, as the international “rules based order” comes under pressure from Trump’s tariffs. What are the implications for investors, and how should we prepare for greater volatility and uncertainty? http://www.martinnorth.com/ Details of … Continue reading "DFA Live Q&A Replay: Investing Now; As Trade Wars Emerge: With Damien Klassen"

In tonight’s show we catch up on Edwin’s predictions – does NOSTRADAMUS walk among us? We look at the massive rise in Council Tax, and also the rise in listings, but only in some places. And given the upcoming election we examine some of the early promises being made in the quasi campaign, despite the … Continue reading "Its Edwin’s Monday Evening Property Rant!"

The news outlets are full of more property news, with some spruiking that the hope of a rate cut in February has spurred people into action after the holidays, with a focus on Melbourne property prices rebounding. So, let’s look at the data and see what is happening. Actually, the January update on prices from … Continue reading "Did Hope Of A Rate Cut Stoke The Property Market?"

This is our weekly market update, where we start in the US, cross to Europe and Asia, and end in Australia, covering commodities and crypto along the way. As expected, this was a volatile week, as questions over AI tech, tariffs and inflation all converged to stoke significant volatility across the trading days. Monday saw … Continue reading "Warning: Market Volatility Squared Ahead As Black Swans Land!"

Many are calling for a RBA cash rate cut in February, but as we look at the overall data indicators, its a line ball call, and stripping away the political pressure and overdone economic commentary, the case is not as strong as you might think. Indeed, the latest RBA Credit Aggregates were pretty strong, and … Continue reading "Is The RBA Really All In For A Rate Cut In February?"

In an interesting alignment of timing, we had Central Bankers at the Fed, the bank of Canada and also the ECB who will turn up today talk about their latest monetary decisions. And whilst it is expected the ECB will cut again, and in Canada they cut rates and announced the end of QT, the … Continue reading "Central Bankers Start Fretting As Trump 2.0 Rolls On!"

Australia has been a global outlier in the current easing cycle as most developed world central banks, including the Federal Reserve, have already cut substantially. The Fed is due to announce the outcome of its meeting later today and is expected to stand pat. The RBA, in tackling inflation through 2022-23, opted for a lower … Continue reading "Does The CPI Numberwang Show That Politics Wins?"