Completions slowed in Q4
New dwelling completions fell from around 57,000 in the third quarter of 2018 to about 54,000 in the final quarter.
Given the material nature of revisions it'd probably be false precision to drive into detail too much harder than that.
Given the material nature of revisions it'd probably be false precision to drive into detail too much harder than that.
In Queensland the great flurry of apartment completions peaked back in late 2016.
Both unit commencements and completions have since calmed down significantly in south-east Queensland over the past couple of years, and the Brisbane rental market continues to tighten steadily.
Sydney's unit pipeline remained stronger for longer, and apartment completions were still flying home at an avalanche rate in the December quarter, contributing to a spike in rental vacancies at the end of 2018.
But here too activity is dropping off in 2019, and there's no realistic prospect of a lasting oversupply of dwellings.
Another CPI miss looms
Meanwhile the economy continues to jolt along at well below its capacity.
NAB expects another super-soft inflation print for Q1, pushing the core rate of inflation down to just 1.6 per cent.
This will push out any forecast return to target some time into the next decade...I guess realistically the middle or possibly second half of 2020.
