“Terms of trade” is one of those terms of the trade that gets throw around by economists all the time. But what does it mean? The simple definition is this: it’s the ratio between export prices to import prices. If you get more for what you sell and pay less for what you buy, your terms of trade improve. And guess what people? Thanks to this particular moment in history, Australia gets a lot more for what it sells and pays a lot less for what it buys (except for crude oil).
April 18th, 2008 | Dan Denning | 9 comments | ContinuedAll Posts Tagged With: "trade"
Australian Trade Deficit Grows for 75th Consecutive Month
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the February trade deficit blew out by 30%, from a revised $2.59 billion in January to $3.29 billion in February. Exports fell by 4%, or about $18.2 billion in the month. The big laggards were metal ores, minerals, and coal. There is a simple explanation for Australia’s trade deficit: the country really doesn’t make much. How else can you explain something that’s been a regular feature of the economic landscape for the past 75 months?
April 8th, 2008 | Dan Denning | 0 comments | Continued