As part of the 2021/22 Federal Budget, the Treasurer reiterated the importance of border reopenings. This will enable the Australian economy to benefit from tourist spending, and should lift migration levels.
There is a concern that it might not be possible to maintain strong economic growth without the arrival of highly-skilled immigrants.
Overall news flow remained supportive of risk assets including equities and credit and enabled most major share markets to make positive progress.
The November CPI print showed that monthly trimmed mean inflation decelerated from 3.5% to 3.2%. While services and housing inflation continued the downward trend, electricity prices surprised to the upside after various subsidies came off.
Manufacturing PMI in November increased to roughly 50, hovering near the breakpoint between expansion and contraction.
