This graphic of relative currency changes in the four weeks from 26th April to 25 May 2010 – shows with crystal clarity how the Australian dollar has fallen further against the US Dollar than currencies from a range of comparable economies.
All data from Oanda.com
It is obvious that the reason for this greater Australian weakness is the Governments new Rudd-Swan-Henry so called Super profits tax on our resource sector, announced on 3rd May. The Aussie has fallen twice as far as the other currencies in the last three weeks. So keep these facts in mind when you hear Government lies promoting how great their new tax is. The other currencies are Canadian, New Zealand, South Africa, Indonesia.
Warwick,
To make matters worse, Ross Garnault is supporting Henry’s idea that EL’s should be granted by a competitive tendering process.
One way of gaining control of a company is to inflate the currency to engineer a boom, create bust, (you know when to move out of the market), then buy in the companies that have gone belly up.
I wonder whether Rudd et al are bankrupting OZ, creating an enormous debt, attacking the miners for their “super profits”, (the punters seem to agree with this policy), and then take them over in a clayton’s fashion by grabbing a larger share of the profits.
What irritates me is the few if any of the economic commentators, let alone the industry, are focussing on the plight of the individual shareholders whose dividends become reduced as a result of a super profits tax.
I also understand from acquainances that Ken Henry whilst an undergraduate at Melbourne was a communist. I wonder if he has changed into a water melon.
I should have added, grab the miners profits into order to pay the debt they created in the first place. Cunning way of reallocating resources and wealth.
Please keep spreading the message Louis.
An American Investor on Bloomberg called the Super Profits Tax “idiotic”, compared Rudd to Chavez and said that the Government had NATIONALISED the miners. Bit over the top?
The ABCs Economics Correspondent appears to agree – about NATIONALISING that is.