A JOBS boom bucking an industry trend has confirmed the Hunter as Australia’s premier manufacturing region.
Figures show 53,000 people lost their jobs in the manufacturing sector throughout Australia in the 12 months to September 2011.
In the same period, trend data showed 4000 Hunter workers gained employment in the manufacturing workforce, which is the second-largest employer in the region behind healthcare.
In the Hunter, 11.1per cent of the workforce is employed in manufacturing compared with 8.9per cent across Australia and it has an unemployment rate (2.8per cent) that is almost half of the national average (5.3per cent).
The Hunter Business Chamber – sourcing information from the Hunter Valley Research Foundation, Australian Bureau of Statistics and elsewhere – has outlined the jobs surge in its submission to the state government’s Manufacturing Industry Action Plan.
‘‘The Hunter has long held the reputation as the powerhouse of the NSW economy and ranks highly as one of the most valued, diverse and resilient regions in Australia,’’ chamber president Richard Anicich said.
‘‘This perfect storm for manufacturing has been brewing for a considerable period of time and those within the industry have been working hard to alert governments at all levels.’’
Tomago Aluminium and Hydro Kurri Kurri are the largest manufacturers in the Hunter and combine to produce 30per cent of Australia’s aluminium.
Work on defence projects has been the driving force behind the dramatic increase, with Forgacs adding 600 employees to its 1000-strong workforce in the past two years.
Forgacs is building the majority of the blocks for three air warfare destroyers and mining and government transport jobs have also contributed.
‘‘If you have a look at what’s happening in Newcastle at the moment it’s what keeps me buoyant about the place,’’ Forgacs general manager Tony Lobb said.
‘‘While ever the mining industry keeps going at the pace it is then manufacturing will continue to grow, but it’s the other projects that have made such a big difference.’’
Newcastle Trades Hall Council secretary Gary Kennedy said the likelihood of the Joint Strike Fighter contract coming to Newcastle would only add to the Hunter’s reputation.
‘‘After the BHP closed, instead of sitting around on their hands and doing nothing, Newcastle businesses diversified and moved forward with a lot of innovation,’’ Mr Kennedy said.
By NEIL GOFFET
26 Nov, 2011 04:00 AM
Original article: http://www.theherald.com.au/news/local/news/general/manufacturing-drives-hunter-jobs-surge/2371358.aspx?src=email
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Sunday 27 November 2011
Wednesday 9 November 2011
Property now preferred over shares and cash
Self-directed share investors turned off by the high volatility of the stockmarket are increasingly turning to property investment, according to the InvestSMART Funds Flow Survey.
The survey results revealed that property was stretches ahead of cash and shares as a preferred investment option. On average, of the 1540 respondents surveyed, property holdings were increased by 37 per cent between 2009 and 2011, while in the same period share holdings were decreased by 18.5 per cent, and cash holdings were decreased by 35 per cent.
Also between 2009 and 2011 respondents increased fixed interest investments by 85 per cent.
The cautious behaviour of investors is what’s driving this change into safer asset classes such as property, said InvestSMART general manager Ron Hodge.
“The Australian sharemarket has been buffeted by global market turbulence in recent times. What started out as a year of cautious optimism was soon quashed by bad news out of Europe with its sovereign debt crisis, China with its inflation concerns and the US suffering lower than expected growth,” he said.
The survey results reveal that the current investment pattern isn’t about to change with 23 per cent indicating they would continue working with their current cautious investment strategy.
“Cautious portfolio weightings will once again be the flavour of 2012; this will continue until there’s sustained low volatility in sharemarkets in many of the de-leveraging economies across Europe and America,” said Hodge.
Original Article Source: http://www.apimagazine.com.au/api-online/news/2011/11/property-now-preferred-over-shares-and-cash
The survey results revealed that property was stretches ahead of cash and shares as a preferred investment option. On average, of the 1540 respondents surveyed, property holdings were increased by 37 per cent between 2009 and 2011, while in the same period share holdings were decreased by 18.5 per cent, and cash holdings were decreased by 35 per cent.
Also between 2009 and 2011 respondents increased fixed interest investments by 85 per cent.
The cautious behaviour of investors is what’s driving this change into safer asset classes such as property, said InvestSMART general manager Ron Hodge.
“The Australian sharemarket has been buffeted by global market turbulence in recent times. What started out as a year of cautious optimism was soon quashed by bad news out of Europe with its sovereign debt crisis, China with its inflation concerns and the US suffering lower than expected growth,” he said.
The survey results reveal that the current investment pattern isn’t about to change with 23 per cent indicating they would continue working with their current cautious investment strategy.
“Cautious portfolio weightings will once again be the flavour of 2012; this will continue until there’s sustained low volatility in sharemarkets in many of the de-leveraging economies across Europe and America,” said Hodge.
Original Article Source: http://www.apimagazine.com.au/api-online/news/2011/11/property-now-preferred-over-shares-and-cash
Monday 7 November 2011
House prices fall slightly in best result in seven months: RP Data-Rismark
Capital city house prices fell just 0.2% in September to $450,000, their best result in seven months, suggesting the housing market may have turned the corner, according to the latest RP Data-Rismark Hedonic Home Value Index.
This was the smallest decline since February 2011 and reversed a trend of accelerating capital losses since the end of March 2011. Over the first nine months of 2011, capital city home values have now declined by 3.6% while over the 12 months to September 30, capital city home values were off by 3.4%.
Despite the fall in values, houses have delivered total returns of 0.7% for the year to date and 0.9% over the last 12 months.
Read the complete article http://alturl.com/mkoiy
This was the smallest decline since February 2011 and reversed a trend of accelerating capital losses since the end of March 2011. Over the first nine months of 2011, capital city home values have now declined by 3.6% while over the 12 months to September 30, capital city home values were off by 3.4%.
Despite the fall in values, houses have delivered total returns of 0.7% for the year to date and 0.9% over the last 12 months.
Read the complete article http://alturl.com/mkoiy
Tuesday 1 November 2011
Having your cake and eating it too - Cash Flow and Capital Growth
Having your cake and eating it too - Cash Flow and Capital Growth The whole point of buying property as an investment is to see an increase to the value of the asset, and the greatest possible income from that asset during the time that the investor owns it. You couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to buy property that doesn’t grow well and has a low rental yield! The whole point of buying property as an investment is to see an increase to the value of the asset, and the greatest possible income from that asset during the time that the investor own
But some investors do believe that they cannot have both cash flow and growth at the same time. Some ‘experts’ have created this misconception by continuing to validate the theory that a property can only have one of these characteristics, either cash flow or growth.
This is simply not true. Throughout her new book, Investing in the Right Property Now!, http://majorstreet.com.au/investing-in-the-right-property-now/
Margaret Lomas shows you that while some property has good growth with low yields, and others have good yields with low growth, the best property is that which has both! Further, buying property which has both is not only highly possible, but such property always exists somewhere, regardless of the present state of the economy.
As an investor, your goal must be to ensure that each property you purchase provides the best possible growth, for the best possible rental yield, during the period that you own it. You want your purchase to have its best performance – its greatest period of growth and most attractive rental yield – when you need it most. Some high income-earners seek growth first then yield later, for others it is the reverse. Margaret takes an in-depth look at both cash flow and growth, and explains how to choose property that gives you what you really need from your property investing.
Original Link
http://majorstreet.com.au/53/investing-in-the-right-proeprty-now/
But some investors do believe that they cannot have both cash flow and growth at the same time. Some ‘experts’ have created this misconception by continuing to validate the theory that a property can only have one of these characteristics, either cash flow or growth.
This is simply not true. Throughout her new book, Investing in the Right Property Now!, http://majorstreet.com.au/investing-in-the-right-property-now/
Margaret Lomas shows you that while some property has good growth with low yields, and others have good yields with low growth, the best property is that which has both! Further, buying property which has both is not only highly possible, but such property always exists somewhere, regardless of the present state of the economy.
As an investor, your goal must be to ensure that each property you purchase provides the best possible growth, for the best possible rental yield, during the period that you own it. You want your purchase to have its best performance – its greatest period of growth and most attractive rental yield – when you need it most. Some high income-earners seek growth first then yield later, for others it is the reverse. Margaret takes an in-depth look at both cash flow and growth, and explains how to choose property that gives you what you really need from your property investing.
Original Link
http://majorstreet.com.au/53/investing-in-the-right-proeprty-now/
Borrowers win Cup day rate cut
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has cut interest rates for the first time since April 2009, handing borrowers a win on Melbourne Cup Day.
The central bank eased the official cash rate by 25 basis points, down to 4.5 per cent.Westpac and Commonwealth Bank were the first of the major banks to pass on the full 25-basis point cut to borrowers on Tuesday afternoon.
NAB and ANZ both said they were reviewing their rates following the decision.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says all banks should match the RBA's reduction.
"Australian banks should pass on this interest rate cut in full," Ms Gillard said.
Read more:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-01/rba-rates-decision/3612652?section=business
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