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  • Oct, 2014

    Importance of mining

    Q. Compared to five years ago, do you think mining is more important to Australia’s economy, less important to our economy or is it about the same importance?

     

    Total

     

    Vote Labor

    Vote Lib/Nat

    Vote Greens

    Vote Other

    More important than 5 years ago

    22%

    23%

    27%

    14%

    21%

    Less important than 5 years ago

    24%

    26%

    21%

    30%

    28%

    About the same importance

    42%

    40%

    48%

    49%

    34%

    Don’t know

    12%

    11%

    5%

    7%

    17%

    42% think mining is of about the same importance to the economy as five years ago – 24% think it is less important and 22% think it is more important.

    Those more likely to think it is less important were aged 18-34 (29%) and Greens voters (30%).

  • Oct, 2014

    ,

    Benefit from mining exports

    Q. How much do the following groups benefit from Australian mining exports? 

     

    Benefit a lot

    Some benefit

    A little benefit

    No benefit

    Don’t know

    Mining company executives

    67%

    14%

    5%

    1%

    12%

    Mining company shareholders

    40%

    37%

    10%

    1%

    12%

    Foreign companies

    37%

    32%

    11%

    1%

    18%

    Federal government

    27%

    39%

    18%

    2%

    14%

    State governments

    22%

    40%

    21%

    2%

    15%

    Regional communities

    8%

    27%

    35%

    15%

    16%

    All Australians

    4%

    25%

    41%

    16%

    15%

    Poor people in the countries we export to

    3%

    11%

    24%

    43%

    20%

    Respondents believed those who benefit most from Australian mining exports are mining company executives (67% benefit a lot), mining company shareholders (40%) and foreign companies (37%).

    Those that benefit least are poor people in the countries we export to (67% little/no benefit), all Australians (57%) and regional communities (50%).

  • Apr, 2014

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    Regulation of industries

    Q. Do you think there needs to be more or less regulation of the following, or is the current regulation about right?

     

     

    More regulation

    Less regulation

    Current regulation about right

    Don’t know

    Aged care providers

    47%

    13%

    18%

    22%

    Banking

    42%

    10%

    30%

    18%

    Financial planning

    40%

    10%

    26%

    24%

    Mining

    39%

    14%

    25%

    22%

    Building and construction

    38%

    15%

    26%

    21%

    Planning and development

    34%

    19%

    24%

    23%

    Private education services

    32%

    19%

    26%

    24%

    Overall, respondents were more likely to think there should be more rather than less regulation of the industries listed.

    In particular, they wanted more regulation of aged care providers (47%), banking (42%) and financial planning (40%).

    While respondents aged 55+ were more likely to think there was too much regulation of businesses overall, they were more likely to want more regulation of financial planning (48%), building and construction (49%) and aged care providers (55%).

    48% of those on income over $1,600pw wanted more regulation of financial planning.

  • Feb, 2014

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    Importance of industries

    Q. How important are the following industries for providing jobs for Australians into the future?

     

    Very important

    Quite important

    Somewhat important

    Not very important

    Don’t know

     

    Very important Feb 2012

    Construction

    58%

    30%

    9%

    1%

    3%

    58%

    Agriculture

    57%

    27%

    12%

    2%

    3%

    Manufacturing

    55%

    26%

    12%

    4%

    3%

    55%

    Tourism

    53%

    31%

    11%

    3%

    2%

    53%

    Mining

    52%

    29%

    13%

    4%

    2%

    64%

    Retail

    46%

    35%

    14%

    2%

    2%

    47%

    Hospitality

    45%

    37%

    14%

    2%

    2%

    46%

    Finance

    40%

    34%

    19%

    3%

    4%

    39%

    Telecommunications

    37%

    37%

    19%

    4%

    3%

    39%

    Respondents regard the construction (58%), agriculture (57%) and manufacturing (55%) industries to be the most important for providing jobs for Australians in the future. These were followed closely by the tourism (53%) and mining (52%) industries.

    Since this question was last asked in February 2012, those think mining is very important for future jobs has dropped from 64% to 52%.

  • Jan, 2013

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    Trust in industries

    Q. How much trust do you have in the following industries to act in the public interest

     

    Total a lot/some trust

    A lot of trust

    Some trust

    Not much trust

    No trust at all

    Don’t know

    Agriculture

    72%

    20%

    52%

    18%

    4%

    5%

    Tourism

    68%

    12%

    56%

    22%

    6%

    5%

    Manufacturing

    56%

    8%

    48%

    30%

    8%

    7%

    Construction and development

    48%

    5%

    43%

    33%

    12%

    6%

    Retail

    47%

    3%

    44%

    38%

    12%

    3%

    Telecommunications

    37%

    3%

    34%

    41%

    18%

    3%

    Banking

    33%

    5%

    28%

    36%

    29%

    3%

    Mining

    32%

    3%

    29%

    35%

    25%

    8%

    Media

    30%

    2%

    28%

    40%

    27%

    2%

    Power companies

    18%

    1%

    17%

    37%

    41%

    4%

    The industries most trusted to act in the public interest were agriculture (72% some/a lot of trust), tourism (68%) and manufacturing (56%).

    The industries least trusted to act in the public interest were power companies (18%), the media (30%), mining (32%) and banking (33%).

    The only industry on which there were major differences was mining where 43% of Liberal/National voters had a lot/some trust compared to only 25% of Labor voters and 17% of Greens voters.

  • Dec, 2012

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    The past year – the economy and industries

    Q. Thinking about the last 12 months, has it been a good or bad year for each of the following?

     

    Total good

    (Dec 10

    Total bad

    (Dec 10)

    Total good

    (Dec 11)

    Total bad (Dec 11)

    Total good

    (Dec 12)

    Total bad

    (Dec 12)

    Very good

    Good

    Neither good nor
    bad

    Bad

    Very bad

    Don’t know

    The banks

    69%

    13%

    71%

    8%

    68%

    11%

    30%

    38%

    17%

    8%

    3%

    5%

    The mining industry

    57%

    14%

    68%

    11%

    53%

    19%

    17%

    36%

    22%

    15%

    4%

    6%

    Large companies and corporations

    44%

    15%

    40%

    22%

    32%

    31%

    5%

    27%

    32%

    25%

    6%

    6%

    The Australian economy

    41%

    20%

    33%

    31%

    29%

    37%

    4%

    25%

    32%

    28%

    9%

    3%

    You and your family

    na

    na

    na

    na

    29%

    36%

    6%

    23%

    34%

    25%

    11%

    2%

    The media

    30%

    14%

    25%

    27%

    21%

    40%

    5%

    16%

    33%

    29%

    11%

    6%

    Farming and agriculture

    14%

    50%

    23%

    40%

    20%

    40%

    2%

    18%

    33%

    28%

    12%

    7%

    Trade unions

    na

    na

    na

    na

    18%

    30%

    4%

    14%

    37%

    22%

    8%

    15%

    The environment

    14%

    37%

    20%

    33%

    18%

    37%

    3%

    15%

    40%

    26%

    11%

    6%

    The average Australian

    na

    na

    na

    na

    17%

    45%

    2%

    15%

    36%

    34%

    11%

    3%

    Small business

    14%

    45%

    10%

    61%

    10%

    62%

    1%

    9%

    24%

    39%

    23%

    5%

    Australian politics in general

    na

    na

    na

    na

    9%

    61%

    2%

    7%

    26%

    29%

    32%

    4%

    A majority of respondents think it has been a good year for the banks (68%) and the mining industry (53%). They are split over whether it has been a good year for large companies and corporations (32% good/31% bad). However, they are much more likely to think the year has been bad for small business (62%), Australian politics in general (61%), the average Australian (45%), farming and agriculture (40%) and the media (40%).

    Compared to last year’s results, respondents considered 2012 a worse year than 2011 for the mining industry (“good” down 15% to 53%), large companies and corporations (“good” down 8% to 32%) and the media (“bad” up 13% to 40%).

  • Aug, 2012

    , ,

    Keeping Our Eye On The Boom

    Deep in the weeds of the 24-hour dust-up over whether the mining boom is over—on the very day that BHP reported a $15 billion profit— lurks a more obvious strategy on the part of the mining companies: a determination to build up the specter of a threat to the boom if “costs” are not controlled—“costs” being workers’ wages—and to take absolutely no responsibility for the blow-back from the boom.

    Some of this is subtle, some not so subtle. The boom is far from bust, as Paul Cleary pointed out in The Australian:

    The projects that mining companies have put on hold are completely overshadowed by the $260 billion in investment already approved by company boards and government authorities that is being poured into mammoth mining and energy projects across the country.

    And:

    Even if commodity prices fall by 50 per cent, these increased volumes will generate increased flows of income into Australia, keeping the dollar strong while driving far-reaching structural change in our economy. This means the mining boom can be expected to deliver benefits and challenges for all Australians for some time to come. [emphasis added]

    The mining barons, themselves, swore up and down yesterday that, no, the boom wasn’t over. But, the Fin gives a little insight into where they are going:

    At The Australian Financial Review and Macquarie Future Forum in Perth, resources chiefs were confident that Chinese demand for commodities will grow in the longer term, despite a slowdown that has seen iron ore and coking coal prices fall to four-year lows.

    However, they warned Australia had become a high-cost place to develop projects, and needed to improve its international competitiveness through reforms to taxation, industrial relations and environmental approvals. [emphasis added]

    Aha. “Reforms” in taxation and industrial relations are code words for the Coalition’s agenda: repeal the resources tax and attack the system of bargaining that protects wages and benefits that makes Australia a decent society. In a decent society, leaders would embrace a once-in-a-lifetime mining boom to invest some of the profits in infrastructure, schools and other in life-changing, society-altering projects. Nope, the mining barons make clear, we’re just not in to that.

    Note that “high cost” never refers to the compensation of the CEOs of the mining companies, or the staggering wealth of the owners of the companies like Gina Reinhart, the richest woman in the world. “High cost” translates into “take it out of the hide of society and the working person”.

    The mining barons view can be summed up thus:

    We don’t care how many people are hurt by the rising Australian dollar. That’s the “free market”.

    We will fight tooth and nail against resources taxes because, well, the “free market” cannot be messed with.

    We truly don’t care  what Australia looks like in 20, 30 or 40 years.


    @jonathantasini

  • Jul, 2012

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    Slipping Away?

    Hate to say, “we told you so” because that won’t pay the bills. But, remember, when we pointed out that China was slowing down and it was downright foolish to let the American Disease infect the thinking in Oz? Well, the mining boom’s last act is coming faster than you think–and that’s a huge warning to take seriously.

    It’s upon us:

    AUSTRALIA’S budget surplus has evaporated and its mining investment boom has only two years to run, according to Deloitte Access Economics.

    The forecast marks a watershed in assessments of Australia’s prospects, implying in the words of this morning’s Access publication: ”The strong bit of Australia’s two-speed economy won’t stay strong for more than another two years or so”.

    The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be a rocky road. If the mining barons, and their political patron– the man in The Empty Suit, leader of the Coalition– would stop resisting, blocking or whittling back serious taxes on the staggering riches a few people are pocketing from every Australian’s birthright, there would be plenty of money to invest in economic strategically smart efforts that would help the country blossom even when the mining boom evaporates.

    And if people would stop wringing their hands over a non-existent deficit problem, we could even be plowing money into projects now.

    The head aches.


    @jonathantasini

     

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