Author: Tony Hooper

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the value of banknotes in circulation has risen sharply. This was despite cash being used much less for everyday transactions. Much of the strong demand for banknotes can be attributed to people’s desire to hold cash for precautionary or store-of-wealth purposes. This behaviour is…

Property transactions are among the largest and most significant financial undertakings that many Australians enter into. As with other aspects of Australia’s economy, innovation and technological change have led to the introduction of electronic solutions for property conveyancing, replacing the traditional paper-based process. To support the shift to electronic conveyancing,…

The Reserve Bank has a rich and unique archives that captures almost 2 centuries of primary source material about Australia’s economic, financial and social history. To enhance public access to these records, we have launched a digital platform, Unreserved. Unreserved enables users to browse information about our archival collection and…

Looking into archival material can provide a new lens through which to view historical events. With the launch of Unreserved, the RBA has released archival records to the public, including longitudinal data on individual bank depositors that uncovers new facts about the behaviour of Australian households during the economic depressions…

Economic conditions for many small businesses in Australia began to improve in the second half of 2020 alongside the broader recovery from the severe economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. While small businesses’ access to finance from lenders tightened in the early stages of the pandemic, various policy measures…

Banks’ funding costs declined to historical lows over 2020, reflecting the monetary policy measures announced by the Reserve Bank. In aggregate, lending rates have fallen in line with banks’ borrowing costs, such that the major banks’ average interest spreads were little changed over the year. Source: Reserve Bank of Australia…

The buy now, pay later (BNPL) sector is growing rapidly and new providers and business models are emerging. While the development of these new payment services is evidence of Australia’s innovative and evolving payments system, it may also raise issues for policymakers. The Reserve Bank is currently considering policy issues…

The exchange rate is influenced by a number of domestic and international factors. Two key fundamental determinants of the exchange rate are the terms of trade and differences between interest rates in Australia and those in major advanced economies. Since the end of the mining boom, the decline in the…

Wholesale gas prices on the east coast have become linked to LNG export prices since 2015. This is because local gas producers can now sell into international markets through the 3 Queensland LNG export terminals. Wholesale prices will continue to be influenced by LNG export prices as long as this…

The COVID-19 health and economic crisis has severely affected emerging market economies (EMEs). As a result, emerging market central banks have employed a wide range of tools to support their economies and financial systems, many of which have been used for the first time. These measures have helped to support…