Australian Households Chase Sun to Lead World on Solar Adoption

Australian Households Chase Sun to Lead World on Solar Adoption

Australian households are world leaders in solar power installation, according to new figures from Australia's peak industry body representing the fossil fuel and renewable energy sector.

The Energy Supply Association of Australia, representing the fossil fuel and renewable energy sector, has sourced data from around the world revealing household solar photovoltaic (PV) penetration in Australia is way out in front of any other nation.

The report shows almost 15 per cent of Australian households have adopted the technology to power their homes.

This is more than triple that of Germans, who are second on the world stage and typically thought of as the most prolific solar adopters.

The report breaks the data down to countries and jurisdictions illustrating where the world's most enthusiastic installers of small-scale solar energy are located.

"Germany, the US, Spain and others are held up as being at the forefront of solar power, but it is Australia, where households have taken it upon themselves to install solar PV, that easily lead the world when it comes to solar penetration," the ESAA report states.

The ACT had 15,637 household installations as of September last year, according to ActewAGL figures. Based on 2011 census data this put the ACT at about 10 per cent of households connected to solar – South Australia leads the way with almost 25 per cent of households connected to solar PV.

Although Australia leads the charge on small-scale installations, Germany is out front with utility-scale solar installations.

In terms of total solar energy produced per million people, Germany's capacity is about triple that of Australia's.

Australian Solar Council chief executive John Grimes said that was due to policies that had focused on domestic solar systems.

"The economics are compelling," Mr Grimes said. "The cost of the technology continues to fall at such a rate that it is already much cheaper to install solar than it is to buy electricity from the grid. And with the advent of cheap energy storage technology – battery technology – that really closes the loop.

"People like the Energy Supply Association and others should rightly be thinking about this. If they don't start to embrace the technology as opposed to resist it, their members companies – the big utilities – are set to become the Kodaks of the future." 



See more at: http://australiasolar.blogspot.com.au/2015/05/australian-households-chase-sun-to-lead.html#sthash.248JT0Dp.dpuf

Farmers Own Milk A Huge Success With Customers!

Woolworths has today announced that the trial of Farmers’ Own milk produced in the Manning Valley has been an enormous success and that this great product will now be available in 105 stores across New South Wales.

This means that Woolworths is directly linking more than 2.5 million Woolworths customers with committed and innovative dairy farmers from the Manning Valley of New South Wales and milk straight from their farms.

In a first for Woolworths milk, the supermarket is working directly with the farmers. After a highly successful trial period, the Manning Valley farmers will now have greater access to this huge customer base for their product.

The milk is permeate free and is available in three varieties; full cream and reduced fat homogenised milk and full cream unhomogenised milk with the cream on top. It truly is the farmers’ own milk, just how they like it.

The trial has run for since October 2013 and Woolworths has seen strong sales, particularly in the Manning Valley stores.


Woolworths Head of Trade, Tony De Thomasis, said the experience has proven to be great for the farmers, great for Woolworths, but most importantly great for customers.

“We are extremely pleased about how well our customers have received Farmers’ Own milk. We know they appreciate a great local product.

“The three varieties have sold very strongly and the return of unhomogenised milk with the cream on top has been a hit. They love the great tasting, fresh milk with a richer, fuller flavour.

Manning Valley dairy farmer, Tim Bale, said: “We’re delighted that this trial has gone so well and that now we’ll be able to deliver our fresh, great tasting milk into a huge market through 105 Woolworths stores.

“We know that customers want farmers to get a fair price for their produce and our direct relationship with Woolworths is delivering that,” said Mr Bale.

The relationship gives the farmers end-to-end transparency from shed to shelf, a longer term contract and a closer relationship with their customers.

http://www.woolworths.com.au/wps/wcm/connect/webSite/Woolworths/about+us/woolworths-news/farmers+own+milk+a+hit+with+customers


My Say On Farmers Own Milk:

Farmers Own unhomoginised Full Cream Milk Won the Consumer Innovation Product of the year award.. congratulations for bringing high quality inexpensive ($2.70 for a 2ltr) milk to the market..excellent product!

Rolling out all over Australia.. a Woolworths near you.

Now that the NZ$ is close to parity.. a very real opportunity exists to import to NZ and attack the #Monopsony and relieve the consumer nightmare that is NZ milk

http://www.farmweekly.com.au/news/agriculture/cattle/dairy/farmers-own-milk-hits-woolies-shelves/2714940.aspx

Using Super to Buy First Home a 'Pressing National Issue' Says REIA

Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey appears to have taken the real estate industry lobby group's advice in suggesting people should be able to use their superannuation to buy their first homes, as the peak superannuation body urged caution for such an approach.

The Real Estate Institute of Australia outlined the radical idea in its budget submission to Mr Hockey last month, with the treasurer saying Australians ought to start thinking seriously about the way in which their super savings can be used in the future because people were working and living for longer.

"We are prepared to look at a diverse range of proposals to help young Australians buy their first home," Mr Hockey said, suggesting that super could be used for a deposit on a first home or job retraining.

His comments were quickly criticised by Labor and some economists, but REIA chief executive Amanda Lynch said using super to help pay for a first home could make housing more affordable and build retirement savings.

"We believe that owning a home is the biggest generator of long-term financial security for Australians and the earlier you can access the housing market, the more secure your retirement will be because most Australians aspire to have paid of their home before they retire," Ms Lynch said.

Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen rejected the suggestion, saying it would have the opposite effect.

"[The] plan would have the likely effect of not only undermining retirement incomes but also driving housing prices up further and making it harder for first-home buyers," he said.

Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia chief executive Pauline Vamos said the plan would benefit the rich far more than the poor.

"There are significant equity issues when it comes to allowing the release of concessionally taxed superannuation contributions for home equity," she said, referring to higher income earners paying 45 cents in the dollar in income tax but only 15 cents in the dollar on superannuation contributions.

They would be able use concessionally taxed super money to buy a house and then top up their super, again at a low tax rate.

"There significant equity issues when it comes to allowing the release of concessionally taxed superannuation contributions for home equity," she said.

But Ms Lynch stood by the proposal.

"The fact about buying a house is that you are actually saving all that equity and the compounding interest will be beneficial. To say that investing in superannuation, which is mainly skewed towards shares, is a safe proposition doesn't hold up to scrutiny.

"In the years since the GFC we have actually seen super being more of a financial risk than previously and a lot of people close to retirement have found their super balances have been dwindling."

Private Health Insurance Pain as Households Struggle to Cope With Rises

Private health insurance pain as households struggle to cope with rises

Private health insurance premiums are set to rise an average 6.18 per cent on April 1.

HALF of Australia’s private health insurance customers are thinking about downgrading their cover in an effort to combat soaring premiums.

Ahead of an average health insurance rise of 6.18 per cent on April 1, new research by consumer network One Big Switch has found that two-thirds of households have had trouble paying their bill.

Its survey of 40,000 consumers also found that many people are making sacrifices to stay insured, including reducing their level of cover, increasing their excess and spending less elsewhere.

One Big Switch spokesman Joel Gibson said this year’s premium hike was the second consecutive annual bill rise of about $300.

“Health insurance is one of those bills that really gets under people’s skin,” he said.

“Sooner or later, something’s got to give, or thousands of consumers will dump their private cover and fall back on the public health system.”




Consumers who \dump their private cover will fall back on the public health system. Picture: Publishing Ingram.

Mr Gibson said some people were trading away certain treatments, such as heart or eye treatments.

MORE: The government’s health fund rebate slashed costing families $120 a yea

He cautioned about quitting private health cover outright. “There’s the danger that if you drop it altogether, because you can’t afford it, it becomes harder to get back in if you are over 30.”

The Federal Government’s Lifetime Health Cover rules penalise people with a loading of 2 per cent for every year after age 30 that they don’t have hospital cover, up to a maximum 70 per cent loading. There are also penalty taxes for middle and higher income earners who don’t take out hospital cover.

“Australians want the peace of mind that comes with private health insurance, but many are now being priced out of the market,” Mr Gibson said.

Medibank chief customer officer Laz Cotsios said customers should review their health insurance policies at least annually.

“A cover review allows people to consider their situation and check that their cover still suits them,” he said.




Medibank branch, Adelaide Street, Brisbane. Medibank was floated on the stock market today. Customers discuss their impressions of the float. Photo: Claudia BaxterALSO: Pay doctors more but only when they provide the right care say health funds

“Don’t forget that you can prepay your health insurance to lock in your current premium.”

More than 20,000 people have signed a One Big Switch petition calling for more affordable private health insurance, and the consumer network has joined forces with News Corp Australia in a campaign to use people power to unlock a group discount offer from a health fund.

RELATED: Mooted private health insurance ‘excess’ rise could double the cost of an operation

Last week was the first week of the four-week Big Health Insurance Switch campaign and more than 45,000 people signed up. Joining is free and there is no obligation to accept any offer that is presented.




The Big Health Insurance Switch

For more details visit moneysaverhq.com.au. One Big Switch and News Corp Australia earn a commission on any offers that are accepted.

Perth House Prices Fell 2.3 percent in February

House values across Perth fell by more than 2 per cent through February despite the cut in mortgage interest rates.

Figures
from RP Data-CoreLogic showed values in Perth dropped by 2.3 per cent
to be 2.9 per cent down since the start of the year.



The
fall was not confined to houses. The value of units dropped by 0.4 per
cent in the month to be off by 0.9 per cent this year.



Over
the past 12 months house value sin Perth are up by just 0.7 per cent,
well short of inflation, while unit values have fallen in nominal value
by 1.9 per cent.



Only Hobart has a softer house market than Perth with values on the Apple Isle up by 0.6 per cent.



The fall came despite the Reserve Bank slicing official interest
rates to their lowest level on record. Banks cut their mortgage rates in
line with the Reserve.



Nationally, prices edged up
by a modest 0.3 per cent but almost all of the growth was in Sydney
where house values lifted by 1.6 per cent.



Over the past year, Sydney values have climbed by 14.7 per cent.



RP’s head of research Tim Lawless said there had been step down in growth over the past three months.

He said outside of Sydney, lower interest rates were failing to drive up values.



“We might not see the lower interest rate environment stimulate the housing market as much as it has in the past,” he said.



“Weaker
jobs growth, higher unemployment, declining affordability, low rental
yields and political uncertainty are all factors that could dent
consumer confidence and provide some counter balance to the rate cuts
and quell any additional market exuberance.”



The Reserve Bank board meets tomorrow with markets putting the chance of a rate cut at 50-50

Australian Dollar Tumbles on RBA Cash Rate Cut

The Australian dollar tumbled by more than one and a half cents on the Reserve Bank of Australia's decision to cut the cash rate to a historic new low.

The local currency hit a fresh five-and-a-half year low to US76.57¢ on Tuesday afternoon, down from US78.16¢ just before the release. The reaction followed the central bank's decision to cut the cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.25 per cent after 18 months of holding the rate steady.

Despite the sharp fall in the Aussie dollar – nearly 20 per cent in the past six months – the Reserve Bank said the exchange rate remained high. 

"The Australian dollar has declined noticeably against a rising US dollar over recent months, though less so against a basket of currencies," the Reserve Bank said in its statement on monetary policy.

"It remains above most estimates of its fundamental value, particularly given the significant declines in key commodity prices. A lower exchange rate is likely to be needed to achieve balanced growth in the economy."

Market forecasts the exchange rate to continue to fall. On Commonwealth Bank of Australia figures, the local currency is expected to fall towards 73¢ by June this year, but the bank's senior currency strategist Elias Haddad said there was a risk the Australian dollar will fall even further and the bank will be revising its forecast.

"We expect a further downside movement here, not just against the US dollar but also on the crosses, due to narrowing interest rate, falling commodity prices and still unimpressive Chinese economic data," Mr Haddad said.

National Australia Bank will also be revising its forecast in light of Tuesday's tumble. Back in November last year the bank forecast the Australian dollar to hit US78¢ by the end of 2015. NAB global co-head of FX strategy Ray Attrill said the bank will be reviewing its forecast after the central bank releases its statement on monetary policy on Friday.

"The market already priced in the expectations of a rate cut, but the currency still lost. It shows the market is still prepared to sell," Mr Attrill said.

In an exclusive interview with The Australian Financial Review in December last year, Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens said an appropriate level for the Australian dollar would be US75¢.

Mr Attrill said the currency could be heading towards the US70¢ mark, given the fall in the commodity prices since December.

"You can argue, if US75¢ was about the right level in mid-December, and taking into account what's happened with commodity prices generally, maybe US70¢ is more appropriate," he said.

A batch of data fuelled RBA jitters earlier on Tuesday. The Australian dollar jumped by more than third of a cent to US78.30¢ after slightly better-than-expected economic data was released: building approvals slipped 3.3 per cent in December (better than the predictions of a 5 per cent slide) and trade deficit narrowed to $436 million in December, beating expectation of more than $850 million.

#AustralianDollar #RBA #interestrates

- See more at: http://investmentaustralia.blogspot.com.au/#sthash.blpVDKN0.dpuf

Don't Get Burnt by The Property Market

Don't get burnt by the property market

How seriously should property investors take recent warnings that Australian property prices are 20 per cent to 30 per cent higher than they should be and that there is an impending apartment glut in 2017? 

Whatever the fundamental basis for these and similar warnings, existing and new property investors need to be aware of the potential downside.

The basic issue is to understand the risks involved with  investments already owned or being purchased. While less popular for purchases of listed assets including shares and property trusts as well as managed funds, large levels of borrowing are widely used to help acquire direct property holdings.

This high level of gearing helps to drive up property prices in good times such as the present and down when markets turn down, for example due to increased levels of vacancies and/or falling rents. Currently, strong foreign buying interest, low interest rates and a shortage of available stock is forcing and encouraging new investors to bid up prices.

While it may be some time off, a similar downward ratchet in prices will start when interest rates rise again and when new housing developments result in an oversupply in the major locations. Compared with share market falls which can be brutal and swift, downward property price movements are generally protracted as sellers holding out for higher prices ultimately are forced to lower their expectations.

A special feature of the apartment market can, however, result in distressed forced sales. This is when a large number of off-the-plan sales negotiated before or during construction fall through. A recent example of this occurring is the setback in the Canberra apartment market due to over-supply and reduced public sector employment opportunities.

In this situation, a significant percentage of off-the-plan  buyers were either unable or unwilling to complete their purchases. The resulting forced sales depressed asset valuations and made it more difficult for heavily geared purchasers to obtain credit to meet their commitments.

The key message for individual investors is to be aware of these and other risks before entering into off-the-plan contracts. While one benefit of off-the-plan purchases is what can often be a lengthy time lag before money is required to complete the purchase, this can be a negative if personal circumstances change or property valuations fall before the settlement date..

The chances of both of these changes increase with the amount of time before completion. The risks are also greater in situations such as the present time when contracts are entered into in a buoyant market. So even if the warnings of problems ahead don't prove accurate, they are a timely reminder to avoid becoming over-committed to a future large heavily geared property purchase.