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> Australia’s last recession -- defined locally as two straight quarters of contraction -- occurred in 1991 Aah yes, the recession we had to have. [1] [1] htt

> Australia’s last recession -- defined locally as two straight quarters of contraction -- occurred in 1991 Aah yes, the recession we had to have. [1] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_1990s_recession_in_Australia#.22The_recession_we_had_to_have.22 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_1990s_recession_in_Austr...

nailer 10y ago
Comments like this are why I left Australia: many Australians believe Paul Keating caused the worldwide recession of the early 90s, or the hyperinflation of the 80s, based on Keating pointing out that the recession was a necessary correction. It is a very inward looking country.
- jacques_chester 10y ago
  It's hard to be sanguine if you're beggared or bankrupted. Keating being right, and Keating phrasing it as he did, are different things.
dmix 10y ago
> The Hawke Labor Government initially responded to the crisis by asking the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission to defer its national wage case. Treasurer Paul Keating was advised to tighten monetary policy, but, with forthcoming by-elections and a state election in New South Wales, the Government opted to delay the potentially unpopular move, which would raise interest rates. Commodity prices dropped and the Australian dollar sharply declined. The Reserve Bank conducted a $2 billion intervention to hold the dollar at 68c but it crashed to 51c. So the government delayed what would have been a natural increase in interest rates and slowed the unhealthy consumption of capital. Instead the delay resulted in a sharp decline in prices rather than a more gradual one. All for political 'timing' as the tough medicine would have been unpopular. Lovely. Monetarist policy is supposed to ease the pain of recessions, not make it worse. > To court the green vote, environment minister Graham Richardson had placed restrictions on mining (notably uranium mining[5]) and logging which had a detrimental effect on already rising unemployment. David Barnett wrote in 1997 that Labor fiscal policy at this time "self-defeating as "with one hand it was imposing a monetary squeeze, while on the other it was encouraging spending with wage increases and tax cuts". A recurring trend here of politics trumping the economic livelihood of the people.
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nailer 10y ago

Comments like this are why I left Australia: many Australians believe Paul Keating caused the worldwide recession of the early 90s, or the hyperinflation of the 80s, based on Keating pointing out that the recession was a necessary correction. It is a very inward looking country.

jacques_chester 10y ago
It's hard to be sanguine if you're beggared or bankrupted. Keating being right, and Keating phrasing it as he did, are different things.

dmix 10y ago

> The Hawke Labor Government initially responded to the crisis by asking the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission to defer its national wage case. Treasurer Paul Keating was advised to tighten monetary policy, but, with forthcoming by-elections and a state election in New South Wales, the Government opted to delay the potentially unpopular move, which would raise interest rates. Commodity prices dropped and the Australian dollar sharply declined. The Reserve Bank conducted a $2 billion intervention to hold the dollar at 68c but it crashed to 51c. So the government delayed what would have been a natural increase in interest rates and slowed the unhealthy consumption of capital. Instead the delay resulted in a sharp decline in prices rather than a more gradual one. All for political 'timing' as the tough medicine would have been unpopular. Lovely. Monetarist policy is supposed to ease the pain of recessions, not make it worse. > To court the green vote, environment minister Graham Richardson had placed restrictions on mining (notably uranium mining[5]) and logging which had a detrimental effect on already rising unemployment. David Barnett wrote in 1997 that Labor fiscal policy at this time "self-defeating as "with one hand it was imposing a monetary squeeze, while on the other it was encouraging spending with wage increases and tax cuts". A recurring trend here of politics trumping the economic livelihood of the people.

deleted 10y ago

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