Chart Of The Day: Australia’s Housing Bubble Weighs On The Aussie

 | Apr 12, 2021 09:30

As it revelaed in its semi-annual financial stability review last week, The Reserve Bank of Australia is anxious about growing risks to the country’s economy. The central bank maintains that “rising prices are still consistent with low interest rates.”

Nonetheless, the RBA will keep monitoring the swelling price of homes. Policymakers are increasingly anxious about a negative divergence currently occuring in the country's real estate arena—excessive borrowing risk in the domestic housing market while office property vacancies increase.

An additional divergence: falling rental fees compared to rising home prices. This data suggests that the 0.1% interest rate is incentivizing Australians to buy homes, pushing house prices higher, while at the same time the lower demand for rentals pressured rental rates lower, a clear indicator of a housing bubble.

Also, concurrently, from a technical perspective, Aussie risk is to the downside.