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."

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Academics call for RBA to raise inflation target to 4% (as predicted!)

As I predicted, the calls for the RBA to raise its inflation target grow louder in the AFR today:

"All this calls into question the wisdom of the RBA’s target inflation numbers. The 2 to 3 per cent per year target is far too low in the current economic climate, and adhering to it can only exacerbate the developing exchange rate, interest rate and export issues we are now experiencing. Instead, the RBA should raise its inflation target to 4 per cent, a move that would help us avoid some of the economic problems we have seen internationally. Raising the target would certainly take some of the pressure off the RBA to raise interest rates, and it would also take some momentum out of the $A’s strength."
at 8:59 AM