Episode 22

We have some big news, and congratulations are definitely in order for Domenique, who is expecting her first child. She’ll be taking a little step back from the podcast for a while, but will be back later in the year.  Today’s show is about the RBA’s February rate hike, shifting global trade dynamics, and the growing debate over affordability.

We kick off with What’s in the News focusing on the Reserve Bank of Australia’s February decision to lift the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.85 percent. We unpack the inflation backdrop behind the move, what it means for mortgage holders versus savers, and why Australia now finds itself moving differently from much of the global central bank pack.

We also talk through the announcement of Kevin Warsh as the incoming Federal Reserve Chair and the ripple effects that quickly moved across markets. That naturally leads into gold, which saw a remarkable surge in January before pulling back. Taken together, these developments highlight the ongoing tension between inflation pressures and relatively soft economic growth.

The Hand then looks outward. The discussion explores how India and the European Union are deepening trade ties amid ongoing US tariff uncertainty, and why India’s economic trajectory is becoming harder for countries like Australia to ignore. Canada’s carefully managed thaw with China also enters the frame, offering another example of nations quietly adjusting their economic relationships without making dramatic breaks.

In The Invisible, we discuss affordability, a word that’s everywhere in political messaging, but far more complex in practice. Is this truly a crisis, or are perception and macroeconomic data telling slightly different stories? Housing, electricity, wages, and consumer psychology all play a role as the episode closes on the structural forces shaping how people actually experience the economy.