Australian Economy Australian interest rates

Jim Chalmers spins inflation fairy tales

Wednesday 30 September 2026

Treasurer “Spin” Jim Chalmers defended the federal government’s inflation record ahead of Tuesday’s 0.25% rate hike from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA).

Chalmers insisted at a press conference with Finance Minister Katy Gallagher on Monday that the war in the Middle East, not government spending, was driving inflation.

“We have an inflation challenge in our economy not because unemployment is too low but because the price of petrol is too high and we’ve got other inflationary pressures”, he said.

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.