Digital Finance Analytics (DFA) Blog

We had important releases from Stats NZ and The New Zealand Central Bank, which combined highlights a weird and unsettling cognitive dissonance. It was perhaps a matter of perspective, because the focus was on the financial system, not individual households, but given the economy is so strongly connected to what households and businesses do, the … Continue reading "Kiwi’s Cracking Under The Pressure, But RBNZ Says Nothing To See Here!"

On Wednesday we got the FOMC decision, and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s roughly 50 minutes press conference, but it was hardly worth the watch as he said price growth will likely resume cooling this year, but avoided offering a timeline for rate cuts. It seems, the burst of inflation seen in the first quarter … Continue reading "What The FED? Higher For Longer As They Wait For More Data…Still…"

Once upon a time, in a land down under, there was a Government who promised to build 1.2 million homes, over five years, or 240,000 per year or 60,000 homes per quarter. And he huffed and he puffed, but despite everything, the best he could manage, at least in the year to March 2024 was … Continue reading "The Stupidest Tale Of All!"

This is an edited version of a live discussion, with Robbie Barwick from the Australian Citizens Party as we look at the latest in the war on cash, and the current claims we are in a “pre-war” environment more generally. What, or who is driving the narrative and what does this say about our economic … Continue reading "DFA Live Q&A Replay: What’s Driving The “Pre-War” And “Cashless” Propaganda? With Robbie Barwick"

In this weeks rumble, we deep dive into property auctions, which will make agents cry, and also look at the smoke and mirrors in the media. Plus Dusty and Evan wreck Edwin’s studio, as well as discussing some eating advice! http://www.martinnorth.com/ Go to the Walk The World Universe at https://walktheworld.com.au/ Today’s post is brought to … Continue reading "Its Edwin’s Monday Evening Property Rant!"

Against the backcloth of higher rates for longer, many of the Australian banks will provide trading updates over the next couple of weeks. As a group, they currently have the highest set of valuations seen for decades, but then, their earnings have held up relative to expectations. So what is ahead? And are all banks … Continue reading "Banking On Profitability, If You’re Big Enough!"

This is our latest weekly market update, starting in the US, UK, then Europe, Asia and Australia, and also covering Gold. Oil and Crypto. A comprehensive round-up of what is happening! We are, it seems entering the twilight zone, as the scent of stagflation is spreading, as inflation becomes increasingly sticky, especially in services, while … Continue reading "The Scent Of Stagflation Hangs Over The Markets!"

Journalist Tarric Brooker and I discuss the latest data, as inflation reasserts itself, and higher for longer seems the play. We discuss the consequences for Australian households, and delve into the charts to understand what is really going on. Here is the link to Tarric’s slides:https://avidcom.substack.com/p/dfa-chart-pack-26th-april-2024 Here is the link to the recent discussion with … Continue reading "Does “Burnout Economics” Equal Stagflation? With Tarric Brooker…"

The value of stocks are driven partly by momentum, through perhaps we should really call this hopium, as its really investors betting with their gut, and the cold hard realities of financial results. Markets have been leveraged higher by rate cut expectations and the prospects of AI. But when the numbers come in at results … Continue reading "Looking Past Hopium Towards Real Numbers…"

The truth is that recent high rise construction in many Australian cities, are riddled with defects, and someone needs to pay for rectification. This surge in high-rise apartment construction happened as building certification was privatised, costs cut and poorly trained workers employed. As a result, we have a litany of increased building flaws and quality … Continue reading "The Crippling Highrise Disaster Continues…"