Often overlooked in the torrent of news from Washington is that the US economy is growing at over 4 per cent per annum and unemployment has fallen to 3.9 per cent, close to a 50-year low, driven in no small measure by Trump’s tax cuts. On the other hand, the Trump administration’s unilateral imposition of tariffs is widely seen as unsettling and driver of economic uncertainty around the globe. With deficit spending rising in the United States and inflation creeping upwards, US monetary policy is tightening, adding to downward pressure on the Australian dollar.   

These developments remind us that the American and Australian economies — and financial sectors — remain closely linked. How will Australian business and households be impacted by these economic developments in the United States? What are some of the implications for policy in Australia, around interest rates, tax, energy policy and banking and regulation?

Citi Australia country chief David Livingstone returned to Australia from Europe in 2016 to head up one of the largest foreign bank subsidiaries in Australia and one of the first foreign banks to enter the Australian market following deregulation in 1985. He joined the CEO of United States Studies Centre Professor Simon Jackman for a public discussion around these questions, part of the Centre’s CEO-to-CEO series.