Economics

Kopi Luwak refers to the beans of coffee berries once they have been eaten and excreted by the Asian Palm Civet. Passing through a civet’s intestines, the beans are then defecated with other fecal matter and collected, dried and eaten or drunk… or perhaps eaten by drunks.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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At Montgomery, we focus more of our attention on the economics of individual businesses, rather than the macro business environment. We do this because we believe it’s very hard to forecast macro variables with any reliability, and we know that the best companies can do well even in a difficult environment.
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by Tim Kelley Posted in Economics.

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Tonight should see the European Central Bank’s Governing Council cut its benchmark rate to a record low 0.5 per cent.
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by David Buckland Posted in Economics.

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Australia’s triple AAA credit rating, strong commodity exports and high interest rates have meant that many have enjoyed the benefits of a high Australian dollar.

Variously described as the Little Aussie Battler, Pacific Peso and the Aussie Ringgit, the Australian currency has now traded for the longest period of time above parity against the US dollar since it was floated in 1983.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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It has always amused us that China, with 1.34 billion people (19 per cent of the world’s population of 7 billion) and with an economy of US$8.5 trillion (12 per cent of the world’s GDP of US$70 trillion), can produce their GDP growth rate within days of the quarter end.
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by David Buckland Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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As you know, we have been barking loudly about a deterioration in China for two years. For investors however, it is often less important that fundamentals are deteriorating, and more important that sentiment isn’t. But sentiment does appear to be deteriorating too.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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In these hightlights from the Switzer Report, Roger gives his views on the situation for Australian mining share prices in light of pressure coming from China as their economy slows down and their foreign exchange reserves decline. Watch here.

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Energy / Resources, TV Appearances.

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Is it a socialist philosophical legacy in our public education system that is thwarting Australia’s future?

If you have your kids in a public primary school, you might have observed that unless the school has the resources for a gifted/talented/enrichment program, everyone needs to wait until the slower students have ‘caught up’. I have heard many stories of the smartest and brightest kids being sent on errands for the teacher because they have already completed their work. In this, whether intended or not, there is an element of the socialist philosophy in the response and possibly the outcome.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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As the US share market hits all-time highs, we are often asked why the Chinese share market, as measured by the Shanghai Composite Index, is 64 per cent below its October 2007 peak.
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by David Buckland Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights, Market Valuation.

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Recently I have been ramping up the discussion about a serious fix we need for our business. The business of Australia requires motivated staff, great products and services, and a lid to be kept on costs.

Looking at our balance of payments however, you can see that we are a profligate country, spending more than we earn and selling off assets to pay for it. Keep going and eventually all our assets will be owned by foreigners from whom we will rent the properties, sending our income offshore at an even faster rate.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights.

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