glenn knows best

"Australian sales of newly built homes dropped to the second-lowest level on record in July, undermining the central bank’s view that interest-rate cuts were helping stabilize the housing market.

Sales fell 5.6 percent to 5,682 last month from June, when they gained 2.8 percent, the Housing Industry Association said in Canberra, citing a survey of the nation’s largest builders. Detached house sales decreased 5.5 percent to the lowest level since 2000, while apartments weakened 6.4 percent, it showed."

And Glenn Stevens cannot see any reason to lower rates further. Confidence is getting near rock bottom; our mining boom is off the boil and cooling quickly; a high AUD is gutting manufacturing, tourism and retailing yet he's off to the US later this weak for the US Jackson Hole FED meeting and Central Bankers get together: where he will learn what?

That there's a world wide deepen recession and CBs are cutting rates then when they can't go any further they print money.

He didn't have to go to the US to learn that. Any school kid in OZ knows it.

But I shouldn't bucket poor Glenn because the prize for the biggest goose must go to Wayne Swan who believes that the present budget will end in surplus. Surely Treasury hasn't told him that's possible so maybe the good tooth fairy forgot to tell him that projected government revenue is plunging.

Honestly what sap would believe that all is rosy in this world.

But back to Glenn, whose arsenal (including the 3.5%) will have less impact the longer he resists using it. Banks control interest rates, taking on the markets to reduce the AUD is not an attractive option, stimulus via QE in an environment which has real inflation is suicide etc so there's not much that can help us.

And didn't I read somewhere last week that an 'economist' recommended that the RBA should raise interest rates! I wonder what he's smoking?

So Glenn's junket to the US this week should be written off as a big holiday. They don't have video links and phones at the FED?