Since the start of the financial year, the RBA has cut rates to an unprecedented 0.75%. What happens if rates crash through zero and into negative territory? In August, Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe told Federal Parliament’s Standing Committee on Economics that the RBA was prepared to do “unconventional things” to kick-start a flailing economy. It may be that unconventional measures are needed for unconventional economic times. At the same time as early signs are showing that the housing market is starting to find its feet in a low-rate environment, the government slashed its expected revenue during December – erasing almost half the surpluses originally predicted through to 2023. The Australian unemployment rate ended 2019 at 5.25%, wage growth has again been revised down
