I hope you achieved your financial goals in FY24 and enjoy a prosperous FY25. Here’s a quick overview of what’s happening with tax, business and the economy:

- Inflation hits 4.0%%
- EOFY inducing stress
- Construction price growth slowing
- Insolvency risk elevated

Despite the Reserve Bank’s best efforts to put a lid on inflation, prices are actually increasing at an increasing rate.

Inflation rose from an annualised rate of 3.4% in February to 3.5% in March, 3.6% in April and 4% in May.

A survey found that 83% of respondents considered tax time to be overwhelming and 56% had experienced mishaps, with the most common mistakes being:

misplacing important documents or receipts = 32%.

forgetting to claim a significant deduction = 31%.

entering incorrect figures that led to tax errors = 14%.

Tender prices for Adelaide construction jobs are expected to rise 6.5% in 2024 compared to the year before, according to property group Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB). That's because “the South Australian economy continues to operate at near capacity”, leading to “labour shortages and rising wage costs”.

Construction prices are expected to rise 6.0% in both Brisbane and the Gold Coast, 5.0% for Melbourne and Perth. In Sydney prices are likely to rise 4.5% in 2024.

Restaurants and cafes are bearing the brunt of the challenging economy, with 7.5% of small businesses in the food & beverage services sector expected to fail in the next year, according to Creditor Watch's Business Risk Index.