A dip in retail spending does not mean the recovery has stalled.

On the contrary, it confirms the recovery is proceeding according to plan.

Back in August, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) released its quarterly monetary policy statement.

In it, the central bank forecast the economy would grow by a half per cent over 2009.

According to the latest national accounts, gross domestic product (GDP) had already grown by exactly twice that amount by mid-year.

The brighter outlook built on that better performance to date should be evident in the next edition of the quarterly statement to be published by the RBA on Friday.
Full Story

The message from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is that we should try to be cheerful as we wait for the rest of the world to lead us out of recession.

It turns out the RBA had probably concluded the economy met the usual rule of thumb for recession when its board met earlier this month.

On Tuesday, the central bank released the minutes of its April 7 board meeting.
Full Story

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut interest rates earlier this month after it realised the outlook for economic growth was even worse than expected.

In the minutes of the April 7 board meeting, released on Tuesday, the RBA acknowledged the economic slowdown had probably met the conventional benchmark for recession - two consecutive quarters of declining gross domestic product (GDP).

“The latest set of indicators suggested that GDP was likely to have fallen again in the March quarter,” the RBA said in the minutes.
Full Story