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Hedge Clippings | 21 March 2025 All of a sudden, next Tuesday's Federal Budget is upon us. No doubt Jim Chalmers was hoping the Federal election would be sufficiently early so he would not have to go through the motions, but the weather patterns in Queensland put paid to that. So unless Albo, who has previously confirmed next Tuesday evening as budget night, changes his mind over the next 3 or 4 days and pays a visit to the Governor General, that's when it will be. While it might be a bit of a phoney budget, the logic of holding it pre-election is quite simple, even if Chalmers has to 'fess up to a deficit closing in on $30 bn. December's Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) predicted deficits of $26.9 bn for this financial year, and $143.9 billion from now until 2027-28. Most punters will ignore that, firstly as the figure's too large for them to comprehend, and secondly, it doesn't immediately and directly hit them where it hurts, in the hip pocket. What Jim's budget speech allows is the announcement of a whole range of cost-of-living relief measures, and we've seen and heard a few of them already: Energy bill relief, support for renters, an expansion of bulk-billed GP visits, and cheaper medicines under the PBS, etc., etc. In other words, directly aimed at the family or household budget. This will be the start (as if it hasn't been going on for a while already) of the election campaign build-up, even before the traditional pork barrelling in specific electorates takes place. You can only expect handouts, however - tax reform, which is desperately required is unlikely to get a mention. Should Albo spring a surprise and pre-empt the Budget, the government will be limited to releasing a Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Outlook (PEFO), independently prepared by the Treasury and Department of Finance. Apart from being independent, it will have none of the theatre and spin potential of Chalmers bringing a whole host of hand-out goodies out of his bag on the night. It's a tight election schedule however, with the deadline of 17th May, and with school holidays, Easter and Anzac Day all falling in between. If all of this seems pretty tedious for a Friday afternoon, it does have one benefit, namely (hopefully) taking Trump off the front page for a second. Sadly, that's unlikely to last for long - if at all. News & Insights Manager Insights | Insync Fund Managers Manager Insights | Seed Funds Management Sports Investing: A Rising Global Opportunity | Altor Capital Investment Perspectives: Share based payments are an expense! | Quay Global Investors February 2025 Performance News Bennelong Emerging Companies Fund Quay Global Real Estate Fund (Unhedged) Skerryvore Global Emerging Markets All-Cap Equity Fund Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund |
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