Overview

• The Reserve Bank cut rates by 25 basis points to 3.6% and warned that persistent productivity weakness will lead to lower wages, weaker spending and declining living standards that it cannot reverse on its own.
• Productivity Commission chair Danielle Wood framed “regulatory hairballs” and policy inertia as key drags on growth and pressed for a growth mindset to speed up approvals and slash red tape.
• The PC’s reform package proposes reducing the company tax rate to 20%, introducing a 5% net cash-flow tax and refining existing laws to regulate AI risk while preserving its economic benefits.
• Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the three-day Economic Reform Roundtable is designed to gather ideas for immediate regulatory fixes and longer-term measures for inclusion in upcoming budgets rather than deliver instant tax or major policy changes.
• Surveys indicate that about 75% of Australians are unaware of the summit and only 29% believe it will produce tangible outcomes, reflecting public skepticism.