Reflection

More on Budget 2023

Last week we looked at the recent Budget’s ‘big picture’ – the unexpected surplus of $4 billion. This week, we take a closer look at some of the specific announcements. There were no really ‘big’ announcements (other than the surplus); rather there were a suite of smaller changes.

Budget 2023 – An Unexpected Surplus

The Commonwealth Government handed down it’s Budget on Tuesday night. One of the most striking things about the Budget is that the Government will be in surplus for the 2022/2023 year.

What is Monetary Policy Anyway?

Last week you may have seen the release of a review into the Reserve Bank of Australia. The review calls for a number of changes, none of which are particularly earth-shattering or will change how monetary policy operates in Australia. But that begs a bigger question: what is monetary policy anyway?

Competition is bad for the Competitors!

There is a basic human principle that we should always remember: financial competition is usually bad news for the competitors. Avoid if possible!

Travel is an Import and how Exchange Rates Work

If you have been travelling overseas for any length of time, you will have noticed how easy it has become to transfer Australian dollars into the currency of whichever country you are in. But, what actually happens when money is ‘transferred’ overseas?

A Climate Change Response that Beats Inflation

Power is one of the biggest costs for households and small businesses. And the costs are rising. The good news is that many Australians can simultaneously improve their personal finances while reducing their use of fossil fuels.

What happened to Silicon Valley Bank?

You may have seen the recent news that an American Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, collapsed. This raises two important questions: what happened? And, could something similar happen here?

What Can an SMSF Pay For?

It has been a while since we last wrote about self-managing your super. Self-managing super can be a lot of fun and, if done well, can be very cost-effective as well. So, this week, we thought we would take a quick look at expenses that an SMSF can and cannot pay for.

Super’s Got a New Cap

You may have seen recent commentary about a new cap on large super balances. It has caused a lot of discussion, but the changes will not affect that many people. Most of us do not really need to worry.

All debt is paid off ‘After-Tax’

If you have a debt, you are probably making repayments. Each repayment you make is probably divided into two parts: interest and principal. Indeed, technically, you are only actually making a repayment if your regular payment includes an amount that reduces the principal of your debt.