Australian Economy – After a non-surprising election result to start the month, September gave us a few positives from a sputtering economy. But overall, jobs are still under pressure with the unemployment rate creeping up, and the construction sector is yet to feel any real relief from record low interest rates.
Global Economy – Most of the data out over the month was on the disappointing side with the exception of some stronger numbers out of China. The US is still showing signs of a long-term bounce back with unemployment falling and factory output growing, but European economic data was flat at best.
Investment Markets – The September curse did not play out with equity markets pressing forward. Australia lagged behind most other major markets even though it was up almost 2%. Japan bounced back with a 8% surge and Chinese equities had another good month following on from a 5.5% return in August.
Outlook – With Australian and German elections done and dusted, politics was supposed to take a backstage. But the dysfunction that is the US congress has kept markets wondering and worrying, with the cost of a government shutdown and likelihood of a US default starting to be factored into prices. It is being called a crisis, but politicians know crises are bad for their business, and they will generally make sure any adverse effects are minimised. Across the Atlantic, a crumbling Italian government is not necessarily new news, but any problems in Europe can have unknown effects on the stability of the Euro and markets.
S&P/ASX 200 – 12 months to 30 September 2013
Source: Core Equity Services