The author has been described by News Ltd as an "iconoclast", "Svengali", a pollie's "economist muse", and "pungently accurate". Fairfax says he is a "Renaissance man" and "one of Australia’s most respected analysts." Stephen Koukoulas concludes that he is "85% right", and "would make a great Opposition leader." Terry McCrann claims the author thinks "‘nuance’ is a trendy village in the south of France", but can be "scintillating" when he thinks "clearly". The ACTU reckons he’s "an enigma wrapped in a Bloomberg terminal, wrapped in some apparently well-honed abs."

Monday, November 22, 2010

Does the RBA want to elastify housing supply, or not?

Interesting article over at The Australian quoting from some of my correspondence with the Bank. It is, however, highly contradictory: the article suggests that the RBA railed against elastifying house supply in 2004, but today the RBA is arguing very vigorously for exactly that outcome. Ahum, so what does the RBA think--is more responsive housing supply a good or bad thing? Of course it is a good thing. As I have said before, the RBA got its supply-side arguments wrong in the mid 2000s, and has now remedied that mis-step. Today it is furiously advocating much more investment in the production of new housing, and the removal of any impediments to the supply-side responding. I made these same points at great length back in 2003 in my report the Prime Minister at the time.
at 6:44 AM