Consumer Confidence
Did the RBA's rate rise shock Australian consumers?
Consumer sentiment was 86.9 before the RBA's September rate decision and just 67.2 afterwards. What does this mean for spending and economic growth?
Benchmark Analytics
Independent economic and financial services analysis
Original analysis of new Australian economic and financial-services data.
Latest analysis
AES Payment Terminal Upgrade
Why Australia may need to upgrade one million payment terminals
Around 970,000 payment terminals and 25,000 ATMs may need upgrading as Australia replaces its ageing TDES encryption with the stronger AES standard. Here's what the technology actually does — and why quantum computing raises the stakes.
Operational Risk
The next financial crisis could start with a technology outage
Australia's banks can hold ample capital and liquidity and still face serious stress if the infrastructure connecting them stops working. The RBA says operational risk is becoming a financial-stability risk.
AI
The AI investment boom is becoming a financial stability issue
AI investment could reach trillions of dollars by 2030, and companies are increasingly turning to bonds, banks and private credit to fund it. The RBA says that is creating a new set of financial-system risks.
Australian Superannuation Financial Stability
Australia's $4.8 trillion super system has become financial infrastructure
Australian superannuation assets have reached almost $4.8 trillion — around one-third of the financial system. The RBA says super has historically stabilised markets, but its growing size and ageing membership create new financial-stability risks.
Benchmark Indicators
Australian economy at a glance
Political Data Alerts
Know what the new data means.
Priority monitoring and rapid analysis of the releases that matter to government relations, corporate affairs and policy teams.
More analysis
RBA
Will the RBA regulate the role of AI in making payments?
Artificial intelligence may soon do more than recommend what you buy. It could make the payment as well.
This emerging system is called agentic commerce. A consumer could tell an AI agent to find the cheapest flight to Melbourne, choose an acceptable departure time and complete the purchase — without the
Private Credit
Private credit is growing rapidly. Why isn't the RBA worried about a financial crisis?
Private credit now provides around 10% of Australian business debt, yet represents less than 2% of financial-system assets. The RBA says that helps explain why investor losses need not become a banking crisis.
Inflation
US inflation is easing. Australia has the harder problem
Inflation remains above target in both the US and Australia, but America's underlying numbers have improved considerably more. The problem for both central banks is that labour markets are now weakening at the same time.
Apple Pay
Explainer: Why Apple Pay is the focus of RBA regulatory supervision
Apple Pay makes paying easier, but behind every tap sits a network of banks, card schemes and technology. The RBA is examining whether control of the iPhone, wallet and customer interface affects competition in Australia's payments system.
Australian Bank Stress Test
How resilient are Australian banks to a housing crash?
The RBA has modelled an economy with GDP down 3%, unemployment at 6.3% and property prices down 20%. Despite the severe shock, Australian banks' core capital ratio falls only from 12.4% to around 11.6%.
Coalition Immigration Policy
The Coalition's Immigration Policy - Facts and Issues
The Coalition is proposing a major reduction in net overseas migration while increasing the emphasis on skilled workers. Here are the facts, economic trade-offs and political implications.
Cost of Regulation
Explainer: How much does regulation cost Australia?
Commonwealth regulation may impose $115–160 billion a year in compliance and delay costs. The Government says its reforms will save $10.2 billion. But one figure is gross and the Productivity Commission's target is net.
RBA Financial Stability Review
A 20% house price fall would leave only 5% of mortgages underwater
Australian dwelling values are already 5.2% below their peak. Yet the RBA estimates that even a further 20% fall would leave only around 5% of mortgages underwater. The reason lies in Australia's unusually large housing-equity buffers.