INTOUCH : When the tap turns…

Turning off the fiscal stimulus tap could be impacting on growth and jobs across the Tasman – at least that’s the suggestion from the latest EL Consult executive demand index.
Over the past few months, the index reports have predicted the Australian economy will face its toughest time in the first six months of this year and note that most of the good employment and growth figures over the past year can be “directly attributed to stimulus spending”.
In January it notes that demand for executives fell overall with demand for IT down 20 percent, engineers down 12 percent and marketing down 12 percent. While resource-rich Western Australia and Queensland showed demand increases, these were overwhelmed by losses in New South Wales and Victoria.