www.newcastlepost.com.au
A patchwork picture of the Hunter’s economy
Continues from page 1. Mr Deeming said consumer confi dence
in the regional economy remained very weak, refl ecting job insecurity outside the resources sector which, combined with a fl at/declining housing market, made for challenging times. “On average, Hunter residents were
pessimistic about the outlook for the regional economy and only moderately optimistic regarding the 12-month outlook. “T is pessimism is one of the factors
that continues to produce retail underperformance. “T e challenge for local retailers
remain that an increasing proportion of household expenditure is spent on consumer services, overseas holidays, online sales and increasing savings or reducing debt.” “Muted” and “insipid” are words which
are being used to describe the Hunter’s housing market. T e number of new residential
approvals fell by 7 per cent in the year to February, with weaker activity in coastal areas dragging down solid land sales in the upper Hunter. Mr Deeming said, on the question of
whether the mortgage cuts of November, December and May would generate a resurgence in regional housing activity, an analysis of the region’s housing aff ordability suggested that further interest rate cuts would be needed to signifi cantly boost activity. T e number of people working in the
region is declining. Mr Deeming said the brunt of the
HVRF DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH SIMON DEEMING
recent slowdown had been borne by part-time workers, as businesses used workforce fl exibility to adjust to demand. “National data shows that
manufacturing continues to shed employment and, despite early resilience, the region’s manufacturing sector appears increasingly challenged by import competition and the headwind of a high Australian dollar. “Job advertisements fell by 11 per cent
in the 12 months to February, suggesting that the regional labour market will remain soft over the short term. T e national data demonstrates a similar annual decline, providing supporting evidence for further interest rate cuts, if the initial monetary stimulus proves insuffi cient.”
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Wednesday, May 16, 2012
The Newcastle Post
LOCAL NEWS
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