Coco Feng via Caixin | The U.S., Australia, India and Japan are discussing formation of a joint regional infrastructure-building initiative, attempting to counter similar Beijing-led efforts aimed at boosting developing market economies, according to an Australian media report.
Acciona has obtained one of the biggest rail contracts currently underway in Australia, namely the upgrade of a line to boost the service in Melbourne worth 518 million Australian dollars (around 350 million euros). It sees 100 billion euros of infrastructure development opportunities in Australia and New Zealand in the next 10 years.
Ferrovial has teamed up with the Australian company Plenary to bid for motorway and other infrastructure concessions in Australia and New Zealand. They will create a joint venture (the Netflow consortium) through Ferrovial’s concessionary arm Cintra. This market is a priority one for Ferrovial, basically because of its high profitability.
The joint venture formed by Leandlease and Turner (subsidiary of ACS) has been awarded a project to extend the Jacob K. Javits convention centre (New York) for a total of 1.5 billion dollars (approx. 1.4 billion euros).
SAO PAULO | By Marcus Nunes via Historinhas | It would be pretty depressing, so late in the game, to see “gold medalist” Australia fall into a Swedish-type trap. I hope Mr Lowe is a lone voice: Australian central bank Deputy Governor Philip Lowe urged vigilance on asset prices inflated by record-low interest rates and said government action is needed to encourage companies to invest.
LONDON | By Kieran Davies at Barclays | Australia’s largest mining boom on record is in its final stage, with mining investment starting to fall at a faster rate and mining exports start to lift rapidly as supply comes on stream. These trends have seen the current account deficit narrow to 1.4% of GDP, the smallest shortfall since 1980, although we expect the current account to remain in deficit as a massive increase in the supply of commodities over the next few years pushes export prices lower.
SAO PAULO | By Marcus Nunes | (Note to generation y: The Rat Pack was the name given to a group of actors led by Frank Sinatra Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr) In 2005 Edward Nelson, at the Research Department of the St Louis Fed, wrote a very interesting paper entitled “Monetary Policy Neglect and the Great Inflation in Canada, Australia and new Zealand”.
SAO PAOLO | By Marcus Nunes | A hint of ‘Schadenfreud’; that´s what I gathered from this piece by James Glynn: “Australia’s “Miracle Economy” Running out of Tricks.”
The European interchange fees reduction project is very similar to the measures adopted by the Spanish Government in 2005. However, several studies show that measures adopted to reduce interchange fees have finally harmed consumers, as French site Bursorama points out. Is there any ideological agenda behind it?
Don’t worry about the external deficit. The Spanish economy needs permanent capital inflows and that isn’t really a problem when the country can generate income to cover interests and dividends. Look at Australia, suggests economist Luis Arroyo.