There was some welcome reprieve for the retail sector this week, with the Reserve Bank of Australia holding cash rates at 4.1% for the fourth consecutive month.
We know how influential interest rate decisions are when it comes to discretionary spending capacity, so October’s monetary decision should give the industry more optimism heading into Christmas.
We have more cash rate decisions in the lead up to the holiday season – and the ARA will continue to advocate for measured constraint by the RBA.
You can read more in our media release, here.
We welcome the recent proposition by Senators Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock to split the Government’s contentious workplace relations Bill to pass the non-controversial measures. This will allow time for greater scrutiny and adequate amendments to the controversial measures – a position the ARA have been advocating for since the Bill was tabled.
The ARA recently made our submission to the Senate enquiry into this Closing the Loopholes Bill and suggested a raft of amendments, citing an increased complexity for employers without any upside in terms of productivity, job creation or workforce participation.
We continue to advocate to Government, the Opposition and Crossbench for sensible amendments to this Bill.
