SAUL ESLAKE

Economist

SAUL ESLAKE

‘Welcome to my website …
I’m an independent economist, consultant, speaker,
and Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow at the University of Tasmania’

Productivity


As Paul Krugman famously said, “Productivity isn’t everything, but in the long run, it’s nearly everything”. I spent half of the interval between working at ANZ and Bank of America Merrill Lynch researching and writing about productivity growth for the Grattan Institute.

Productivity and inclusive growth

Economic Policies, Productivity | 1st July 2013

Chapter 5 in Paul Smyth and John Buchanan (eds), Inclusive Growth in Australia, Allen & Unwin (2013) (for more on this book see here or here).


Productivity

Labour Market, Productivity | 24th May 2012

2nd Bishop Manning Lecture, hosted by the Catholic Commission for Employment Relations, 24th May 2012


Australia’s Productivity Performance

Productivity, Publications | 18th February 2012

Essay published in the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA)’s Annual Political and Economic Overview, February 2012


What can be done to improve Australia’s productivity performance

Productivity, Publications | 8th September 2011

Saul Eslake | The Conversation | 8th September 2011 What is to be done about Australia’s deteriorating productivity performance? It’s by no means inconceivable that the answer to this question could be “nothing”. Historical precedent strongly suggests Australians and their politicians will feel no great compulsion to embrace a program of productivity-enhancing economic reforms as […]


Productivity: The Lost Decade

Productivity | 15th August 2011

Paper presented to the annual policy conference of the Reserve Bank of Australia, 15th August 2011


Australia’s Productivity Challenge

Productivity | 19th February 2011

Report co-authored with Marcus Walsh and published by the Grattan Institute, February 2011


Whatever happened to the productivity revolution?

Productivity, Security | 10th January 2007

Op-ed article published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 10th January 2007


Competition, Productivity, Economic Growth and Living Standards

Economic Policies, Productivity | 3rd February 2005

Address to the Adjudication Branch of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission – Mollymook Shores Resort, New South Wales, 3rd February 2005


SPEAKING ENGAGEMENT

Speaking Engagement | Boardroom Advisory | Commissioned Report | Expert Witness



Saul Eslake spoke to Zurich Australia executives and staff at their ‘Accelerate’ conference in Sydney on 9th May 2024, covering short- and longer-term trends in major ‘advanced’ economies, China, India and Australia, with a bit of geo-politics thrown in.



“You are the best economic thinker in the country hands down”

Sheryle Bagwell, recently retired Senior Business Correspondent (and sometime Executive Producer),
ABC Radio National Breakfast


“Just want to congratulate you Saul on the unbelievably good set of slides you just presented, possibly the best I have ever seen. You have set the bar very high.”

Dr Joe Flood, Adjunct Fellow, RMIT University, Pandemicia


“Thank you very much for your excellent presentation for the Economic Society today. It is always a great pleasure to hear your eloquent, up-to-date and comprehensive talks.”

Andrew Trembath, economist, Victorian and Australian Government agencies


Request Speaking Engagement


WHAT'S NEW

Most Recent Articles, Talks and Presentations


The World and Australian Economies in a Nutshell – Presentation to 2025 All Actuaries Summit
Productivity, The Australian Economy, The Global Economy
12th June 2025


Inequality in the Distribution of Wealth – An Inter-Generational Perspective
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Taxation
5th June 2025


Tasmanian Government Privatisation Assessment – ‘Stage One’ Report
Economic Policies, Tasmania, Topics
1st June 2025


Tasmania’s 2025-26 State Budget puts the main task off to another day
Economic Policies, Tasmania
29th May 2025


Is the United States about to step over a dangerous financial precipice?
Economic Policies, News, The Global Economy
24th May 2025


Government’s proposal to increase the tax on superannuation
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, Recent Media Interview, Taxation
22nd May 2025


The funding of greyhound racing in Tasmania
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Tasmania
22nd May 2025


Victoria’s profligacy is a problem for all of us
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, The Australian Economy
20th May 2025


An inter-generational perspective on wealth inequality in Australia
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Video, Housing, Taxation
16th May 2025


Labor should use its second victory as a platform for ambitious reform
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News
5th May 2025


Global turmoil, tariffs and impacts on the Australian economy
Asian Economies, Economic Policies, The Australian Economy, The Global Economy, Topics
30th April 2025


The two worrying trends revealed in Australia’s AAA warning
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, The Australian Economy
30th April 2025


Australia’s Federal Election 2025 Key Issues
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, Productivity, Recent Media Interview, Taxation, The Australian Economy
27th April 2025


2025 election issues – a podcast with the hosts of SBS News’ “Party Time”
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Recent Media Interview
25th April 2025


Australia’s ‘housing crisis’ – and how (and why) both major political parties plan to make it worse
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News, Recent Media Interview
19th April 2025


NEWS

TV, Radio & Print Media


Is the United States about to step over a dangerous financial precipice?
Economic Policies, News, The Global Economy | 24th May 2025

Government’s proposal to increase the tax on superannuation
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, Recent Media Interview, Taxation | 22nd May 2025

Victoria’s profligacy is a problem for all of us
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, The Australian Economy | 20th May 2025

Labor should use its second victory as a platform for ambitious reform
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News | 5th May 2025

The two worrying trends revealed in Australia’s AAA warning
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, News, The Australian Economy | 30th April 2025

Australia’s ‘housing crisis’ – and how (and why) both major political parties plan to make it worse
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News, Recent Media Interview | 19th April 2025

Housing Policies Could Push Up Prices
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News, Recent Media Interview | 17th April 2025

Housing policies in the 2025 election
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News | 17th April 2025

Bad Housing Policy (yet again?)
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News, Recent Media Interview, Taxation | 14th April 2025

There must be an election on – both major parties are proposing policies which will push up house prices
Australian Society and Politics, Economic Policies, Housing, News, Publications, Taxation | 13th April 2025

Tariffs, Global Economics, and the Future of Trade Policies
Economic Policies, Globalization, News, The Global Economy, US Economy Video | 8th April 2025

Stocks bloodbath: Why investors no longer think Trump can make America great again
Economic Policies, News, The Global Economy | 7th April 2025

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VIDEO

Most Recent Multimedia


TESTIMONIALS

What Others Say


Australian Minister for Housing, the Hon. Clare O'Neill MP on ABC Q&A, September 2024

“We are lucky as a State to have an economist of your calibre willing to readily make yourself available to give us a clea r perception of where we are at and the direction we need to go for a better future”
Diplomatic Representative, August 2024

“You are one of the best at what you do in the world”
Gail Fosler, Chief Economist, The Conference Board, New York, December 2002

“I have never known an economist to have such a knowledge of world economic facts and to be able to bring to bear so much information in answering a question without notice”
Charles Goode, Chairman, ANZ Bank, July 2009

“Saul Eslake is … a highly regarded independent economist with the highest degree of integrity"
John Durie, Columnist, The Australian, July 2009

“… one of the few people in this world who can have so many oranges up in the air at the same time but still manage to catch them"
Andrew Clark, journalist, Australian Financial Review, November 2008

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LINKS

Useful Links


Below is a list of links I’ve found useful under the following broad topics

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