Economic and market news
In Australian economic and market news this week, new datashow that unemployment is holding fairly steady. The latest figures reveal that unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage points to 3.8 per cent in March. There was a drop of 7,000 people employed, which was said to be a return to a more usual seasonal pattern after larger-than-usual flows of people into employment in February, and smaller-than-usual flows in December and January.
Commentators suggested that this ongoing tightness in the labour market will mean that the Reserve Bank is unlikely to cut its official interest rate when it meets in early May.
Looking at the global economic outlook, the International Monetary Fund released its latest forecasts, indicating that it believes that global growth will hold steady at 3.2 per cent in 2024 and 2025. This is up from the January forecast of 3.1 per cent and October's forecast of 2.9 per cent. The improvement in prospects is said to be because of the strong US economy and fiscal support in China, and a slight acceleration for other advanced economies. Although 3.2 per cent is below the historic average of 3.8 per cent, the IMF said the global economy is proving more resilient than expected.
Australian indices
ASX 200: Rose 0.94 per cent over the week to close at 7683.5 points on Tuesday.
All Ordinaries: Also rose, 0.96 per cent in the period, closing at 7937.9 points on Tuesday.
Government Bonds
Government Bond Yields (Source: Bloomberg)
|
NAME |
COUPON |
PRICE |
YIELD |
1 DAY |
1 MONTH |
1 YEAR |
|
GTAUD2Y:GOV Australia Bond 2 Year Yield |
4.25
|
100.67 |
3.89% |
-4 |
+8 |
+75 |
|
GTAUD5Y:GOV Australia Bond 5 Year Yield |
3.25 |
97.02 |
3.91% |
-4 |
+22 |
+71 |
|
GTAUD10Y:GOV Australia Bond 10 Year Yield |
3.75 |
95.79 |
4.27% |
-5 |
+23 |
+81 |
|
GTAUD15Y:GOV Australia Bond 15 Year Yield |
3.25 |
86.73 |
4.45% |
-5 |
+21 |
+66 |
Reserve Bank of Australia (Source:RBA)
|
RBA CASH RATE TARGET (RBATCTR:IND) CURRENT (per cent) |
MOST RECENT DECISION (percentage points) |
MOST RECENT CHANGE (percentage points) |
1 YEAR PRIOR (per cent) |
|
4.35 |
+0 (19 March 2024) |
+0.25 (7 November 2023) |
3.60 |
Currencies (source:RBA)
As at the close on 23 April, the AUD/USD was up 0.45 per cent over the week, closing at 0.6455 on Tuesday. The AUD/RMB was up 0.55 per cent, in the period, closing at 4.6768 on Tuesday.
Venture Capital
Kinoxis Therapeutics
Stoic investees Kinoxis Therapeutics made the very exciting announcement that it has successfully completed its Phase 1 Study, investigating the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of KNX100 in healthy volunteers. KNX100 has been shown to be safe and well-tolerated, paving the way for further exploration into whether it can improve treatment outcomes for people suffering with debilitating psychiatric illnesses. Kinoxis is now gearing up for an ambitious Phase 2 program, exploring KNX100 as a treatment for substance use disorders, including those related to opioids, stimulants and alcohol.
Wildlife Drones
This week, Stoic investee shared a video montage of its incredible journey over 2023.
Property
This week’s residential auction clearance data show that 74.4 per cent of properties sold last week, up 1.7 percentage points relative to the previous week (72.7 per cent). The combined capitals preliminary clearance rate has consistently held above 71 per cent through the year to-date, with a high of 76.2 per cent over the week ending February 11th, and a low of 71.1 per cent in the last week of March.
