31 December – The Australian all ords ASX index falls by a record 43% in 2008. Stock markets around the world, including Wall St, plunge to record or near record lows. Defying Middle East volatility, crude oil falls 60% in the year and US house prices plunge 18% from already low levels.
28 December – Israel starts air attacks against Gaza claiming it is essential to stop Hamas sending rockets into southern Israel.
22 December – Clarke report on arrest and deportation of Mohamed Haneef released finding arrest unjustified, mystified by Kevin Andrew’s cancellation of visa, but blaming no one.
GMH announces it will build an all-new small vehicle in Australia, partly funded by the Rudd Government’s Green car program.
21 December – PM Rudd unveils a $1.2 billion four-year program to combat homelessness.
20 December – Bush provides $Aust 25 billion to Detroit’s big carmakers. Obama supports plan.
Ross Garnaut criticises Rudd Government’s emission trading scheme. States by being too generous with free permits it will put a strain on future budgets.
17 December – US Federal Reserve slashes interest rates down to between zero and 0.25%, the lowest in its 95-year history. Dow rallies on Wall St by 4.2%, but minor gain only on ASX.
15 December – Rudd releases emission target of 5% for 2010 able to go to 15% by 2020 depending on world agreement. Generous compensation package included for business and taxpayers, carers, pensioners.
5 December – Treasurer Swan reveals agreement by big four banks to set up a temporary vehicle to provide credit to car dealers.
3 December – Official figures reveal GDP grew by only 0.1% in the September quarter, putting economy on edge of recession.
Government insists any merger between Qantas and British Airways will only take place if the terms of the Qantas Sale Act are observed and would have to comply with other legislation such as the Trade Practices Act and the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeover Act.
2 December – Reserve Bank cuts interest rates by a full one per cent, reducing the cash rate to 4.25 per cent, the swiftest reduction in nearly two decades. The bank stated a factor was the “significant moderation” in domestic demand.
1 December – Barak Obama appoints Hilary Clinton as his Secretary of State.
Penny Wong explains reasons for not announcing 2020 emission target at Poznan conference.
Malcolm Turnbull dumps Nationals Senator Fiona Nash as Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for water resources after she voted against Coalition which supported a government bill giving tax concessions for carbon sinks, such as forestry plantations.
30 November – Penny Wong announces a back flip with decision not to carry through with previous policy of announcing the emission target for 2020 at the Poznan UN climate change conference in Poland.
26 November – Rudd announces the Government is prepared to go into a ‘temporary’ Budget deficit to preserve employment.
Terrorists attack major hotels and other targets in Mumbai.
24 November – APEC leaders meeting in Peru, vowed to step up “extraordinary” efforts to boost the international economy, but no specific measures announced.
President-elect Obama outlines plan to create 2.5 million jobs in the US.
20 November – Australian ASX closes down exactly half the level of a year ago.
Australian Federal Police say they will no longer be applying for control orders on David Hicks.
Ford announces it has reversed its decision to close its engine plant at Geelong. Federal Government providing $13 million of the $21 million needed to retool the plant.
18 November – GM Holden announces it will cut production by a lot half in the first three months of 2009.
17 November – The Australian share market trades at a new four-year low, after a drop on Wall Street on Friday, and the G20 summit.
Japan slips into recession after GDP contracted by 0.1 per cent in the three months to September, after falling 0.9 per cent in the quarter before that.
16 November – G-20 group of nations meeting in Washington agree to bolster their economies and overhaul international regulatory regime, but avoided specific commitments on the degree of stimuli. They will meet again in March when Obama will be President.
15 November – The economy of the 15 nations sharing the euro has slumped into recession for the first time ever, EU data has revealed, with GDP falling 0.2 per cent in the second and third quarters.
12 November – Treasury Secretary Ken Henry addresses National Press Club. Says mid-year economic forecast of 2.0% growth for 2008-09 was not subject to any pressure from government. As head of the tax review he bemoans tax complexity.
10 November – China announces $855 billion economic stimulus package with huge spending on roads, rail and ports.
Rudd announces 13 year - $6.2 billion investment plan for car industry.
6 November – Overnight Russia announces it is stationing its own missiles to counter the threat from US missiles close to its border in Poland. Seen as diplomatic move timed for Obama presidential win.
5 November – US Presidential elections produce a landslide and historic win for Barak Obama. Democrats grip in both congressional chambers tightened. World welcomes Obama victory.
Mid-year economic review by Treasury released showing slowing economy will slash federal revenue by $40 billion over the next four years.
4 November – Reserve cuts interest rates by 0.75%, to 5.25%, surprising markets expecting 0.5% cut. In the last three months rates have been cut 2.0% to the lowest level in five years.
30 October – Overnight US Reserve cuts interest rates by 0.50% to 1%. Markets react with 3% Wall St gain.
Treasury releases its long term modelling on climate change.
A small retreat on Wall St from the previous day’s gains.
29 October – Wall Street rebounds overnight by 10.88%, the second biggest one day rise in its history.
General Motors in the US in desperate trouble and tipped to fall unless US Government props it up.
28 October – Overnight the Japanese share market falls to its lowest level in 26 years.
News poll shows little change in Labor’s lead over Coalition following the emergency measures announced a fortnight ago. Rudd’s Satisfaction rating jumps 10%, while Turnbull edges up a mere 1%.
Government offers to make cash management trusts and mortgage funds banks if they can meet the requirements of the regulator APRA, thus being covered by guarantees as banks are.
27 October – Rudd rejects guarantees for fund mortgage fund investments on the grounds that these are market risk investments, unlike deposits in banks.
Reserve Bank intervenes and buys Aust dollars to prop up the local currency. It’s only the second intervention since 2001. The $A edged up slightly but was around 35% lower than the 98c it reached in July.
20 October – Pressure mounts on government from investors in mortgage funds such as Axa, Challenger and Perpetual, for the government to guarantee these investments, frozen from customer access by fund managers.
14 October – Kevin Rudd announces a $10.4 billion spending program with money for pensioners, housing seekers, families and training programs.
The western world’s major central banks take the unprecedented move of offering unlimited cash injections to institutions to ease the lending crisis.
World share markets make big gains.
12 October – Kevin Rudd announces the government will guarantee all deposits in banks, building societies and credit unions.
8 October – Markets around the world crash.
In an unprecedented move, western central banks coordinate rates cut. Markets don’t initially respond.
Kevin Rudd reveals he phoned Chinese Premier Wen Jiabo (7 October) and received a personal assurance China’s economy would remain strong enough to prop up the Australian economy.
Obama and McCain have second debate.
7 October – Reserve raises interest rates a full one per cent. Banks keep 0.2%. Australian markets surge.
6 October – Stock markets around the world slump heavily despite passage of US bailout legislation.
4 October – US Vice-Presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin.
3 October - US Congress passes $700 billion Wall St bail out measure.
30 September – Confident that Congress will soon pass bail out bill, US stock market recovers by 5% after previous day’s 7% crash. Other world markets, including Australia, also make partial recovery.
Professor Ross Garnaut delivers his final report on global emissions, Garnaut gives Government the option of choosing to cut emissions by 10% by 2020 levels to hold carbon levels to 550 parts per million. This he believes, is an achievable target to take to the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen at the end of 2009. If achievable, he would also accept a low carbon level of 450 parts per million, meaning cutting emissions by 25% by 2020 and 90% by 2050.
29 September – US House of Representatives shocks world economy by refusing, narrowly, to pass Wall St bail out bill. US stock market crashes 7%, the biggest crash ever in one day.
26 September – Bush holds White House summit on Wall St bail out plan.
22 September – Markets around the world slump again as doubts grow about the rescue package.
Kevin Rudd departs for United Nations and a gathering of world heads of government. He is also lobbying for a position for Australia on the Security Council.
19 September – With news of a $US700 billion rescue package for Wall St, markets around the world leap.
17 September – US Government seizes control of global insurance giant, American International Group with a $US85 billion bail out.
16 September – Malcolm Turnbull defeats Brendan Nelson 45 to 41 in Liberal party room leadership vote.
15 September – WA National Party decided to support the Liberals in forming government.
Lehman Bros, America’s fourth biggest investment bank goes into liquidation. Wall St slumps.
11 September – Sydney Morning Herald and The Age carry extensive interview with Peter Costello who declares he is not challenging Nelson and will stay in Parliament while it suits him.
9 September – Addressing Returned Services League, Rudd announces a proposal to expand the RAN to meet the military build-up underway in Asia.
6 September – WA Labor Government loses majority in knife-edge election outcome. Parliament hung and bargaining needed with Nationals and independent for minority government to be formed.
Rob Oakeshott, former NSW state National MP easily wins Lyne by-election as independent. Loss of seat formerly held by Mark Vaile reduces Nats in House to only nine.
Tight struggle in by-election for SA federal seat of Mayo. Liberal majority of Alexander Downer slashed and Greens refuse to concede at closing of counting the seat has gone to Liberal Jamie Briggs
5 September – NSW Premier Morris Iemma resigns after his Right faction objects to the sacking of Treasurer, Michael Costa. His replacement unanimously elected by Caucus, Nathan Rees, only entered parliament at the 2007 election. Carmel Tebbutt elected deputy Premier. Both, uniquely, are from the Left faction.
Ross Garnaut presents his second report on global warming with the benefit of Treasury modelling and recommends a conservative target of 10% reduction in emissions by 2020.
John McCain addresses the Republican convention.
4 September – NSW Deputy Premier, John Watkins, announces his retirement.
3 September – Surprise nomination for Vice-President, Sarah Palin gives impressive speech to Republican convention.
2 September – Reserve Banks cuts interest rates by 0.25%, to 7%, the first cut in seven years. The Reserve has lifted rates on 12 occasions since 2002.
28 August – Barack Obama confirmed by Democratic Convention as the party’s presidential candidate.
27 August – Kevin Rudd announces details of education revolution which would withhold funds from states for non-compliance on a scheme for parents to know the performance of schools and failed teachers would be sacked.
26 August – Parliament meets for first sitting after Winter break.
21 August – More than half the former Liberals have refused to join the newly merged LNP, according to The Australian.
18 August – Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf resigns rather than face impeachment charges by hostile Parliament.
15 August – Bracks’ review of car industry released. Recommends extra assistance for industry and cut in tariff from 10% to 5%.
11 August – As part of the Henry tax review a discussion paper on pensions released.
Cease fire between Russians and Georgians after Russia refused a cease fire offer for several days.
9 August – Setback to ALP in Northern Territory elections, with 9% wing to Country Liberal Party.
8 August – Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony.
7 August – Georgian military attack the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali. Russian military forces hit back savagely, forcing Georgians to hurry out of South Ossetian.
6 August – Discussion paper on Ken Henry’s tax review published.
Petrol under $US140 a barrel.
Wall St makes strong recovery.
5 August – ACCC report on grocery prices published. Government says it can’t guarantee that grocery prices will be reduced as a result.
29 July – Brendan Nelson forced into humiliating backdown when shadow Cabinet refuses to endorse a new climate change policy of no action until other big emitters such as China and India sign up to an international agreement.
24 July – Inflation spikes at highest point for 13 years reaching 4.5% in June quarter with a 1.5% jump in the quarter.
20 July – Liberal pre-selection contest for the Mayo by-election won by Jamie Briggs, a former Howard staffer who played a key role in the architecture of Work Choices.
19 July – Mark Vaile, former Nationals Leader, announces he will retire from politics, causing a by-election in his NSW seat of Lyne.
18 July – Woodside claims the emission trading scheme will threaten development of $60 billion of liquefied natural gas investment.
16 July – Penny Wong unveils Carbon Pollution reduction Scheme.
11 July – Nelson questions whether emission cap and trade system is needed.
9 July – Rudd in Japan for Group of 8. Touts world trade agreement and Garnaut report.
8 July – Deputy Opposition Leader, Julie Bishop ‘clarifies’ Nelson’s comments on emission trading start-up. She says the policy for the Opposition remains unchanged from the Shergold finding that the scheme should start in 2012 and accepted by Howard Government. Split seen in Opposition on climate change.
7 July – Opposition Leader, Brendan Nelson, says there should be no start on an emission trading scheme until there is a world agreement on cutting emissions.
3 July – COAG meets and agrees to a new water deal for Murray-Darling Basin. Immediately attacked by Wentworth Group of Scientists as a failure to deal with urgent crisis in the Murray.
2 July – Victorian Premier Brumby refuses to cooperate on urgent rescue plan for Murray and will not allow extra water from Victoria into Murray. Professor Mike Young of Wentworth group pleads the clock is ticking and the present ten year plan for the Murray-Darling Basin must be abandoned. Water Minister, Penny Wong says it will not change.
1 July – Despite John Della Bosca being ordered by Premier Iemma to give a statement to police in Iguanas restaurant issue and Belinda Neal was also reminded by Rudd of her promise to the Parliament to cooperate with the police, neither have made a statement.
29 June – Taverner Poll in Sydney’s Sun-Herald shows crash in Iemma Labor’s standing in NSW. Two-party preferred the Opposition is on 56% with Labor on 44%, meaning an election landslide win for Coalition. Political observers expect a challenge to Iemma in Labor Caucus is inevitable.
In Gladstone for Cabinet meeting Kevin Rudd says outcome of Gippsland by-election will not deter him from starting emission trading scheme in 2010, the election year.
27 June – Gippsland by-election victory to Nationals with a two-party preferred swing against Labor of 7.25%. A big defeat for Brumby Labor Government in by-election for heartland ALP Victorian seat of Kororoit with swing against it of 16.5%.
26 June – Parliament rises for Winter recess with Government and Opposition differences on petrol pricing under an emission trading scheme unresolved.
23 June – Melissa Batten, former secretary to Labor backbencher Belinda Neal, paid to appear on A Current Affair, admits her statutory declaration on the Iguanas restaurant affair was a lie and she was pressured to change it by Neal.
Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics forecasts an unprecedented boom in commodity exports next financial, up 40% to a record $212 billion.
18 June – News breaks on ABC that a scientific report on the Murray-Darling Basin warns parts of the river system are ‘beyond the point of recovery’ unless they get water by October.
17 June – House agrees to send case of Belinda Neal, MP for Robertson over alleged claims she made about the Liberal MP for Indi Sophie Mirabella’s pregnancy and her child being a ‘demon’ if she had evil thoughts.
16 June – Finance Minister Tanner and Resources Minister Ferguson criticise Asian countries for subsidising fuel prices.
14 June – Mass breakout of Taliban fighters from Afghanistan jail when gate blown off jail. Suspicion that it was aided by those responsible for the jail.
12 June – Rudd in Japan admits he cannot take the dispute with Japan over whaling any further and he and Japanese PM Fukuda had ‘agreed to disagree’.
Damning Callinan report on incompetence of Australian quarantine and bio-security services allowed outbreak of horse flu which devastated Australian horse industry.
11 June – Rudd in Japan, rebukes Labor MP Belinda Neal, wife of John Della Bosca over restaurant fracas. Warns her pre-selection should not be taken for granted.
10 June – Toyota and Rudd jointly announce a Hybrid Camra to be built in Melbourne with $35 million help from Australian Government.
9 June – In Hiroshima Rudd announces a new international commission aimed at nuclear disarmament and nuclear weapons proliferation with Gareth Evans at its head.
8 June – Rudd departs for Japan. Call on Group of 8 finance Ministers to apply the blowtorch to OPEC to step up oil production.
4 June – Barak Obama finishes the primary race with decisively more delegates to the Democrat’s Convention to be assured to the nomination for the presidential race.
Kevin Rudd unveils a plan for a European Union type structure east of Suez including India, China, all of Asia, with Australia and the United States involved.
3 June – Latest Newspoll shows Rudd as better PM has slipped only 4% to 66%, while Nelson has gained 5% to a depressing 17%. Two-party preferred there is no change – Labor 57% to Coalition 43%.
2 June – Kevin Rudd in a ministerial statement to Parliament announces battle group will be withdrawn from Iraq by the end of the month. Howard commented he had no regrets about his decision to go to war.
29 May – ACCC chair Graeme Samuel produces a press release saying the economic modelling shows FuelWatch will “make a statistical reduction” in petrol prices. Opposition immediately challenges modelling and calls for its release.
28 May – Laurie Oakes on NINE Network gets leak four Government Departments advised against FuelWatch petrol price monitor scheme.
NSW Liberal Party in disarray in advance of Council meeting as the President, Geoff Selig, Vice-President Rhondda Vanzella and Treasurer, Robert Webster announcing their intention to resign. Selig’s proposals to overcome branch stacking has been rejected by the Right faction and expected to be defeated at the Council meeting.
27 May – Leak of letter from Resources Minister, Martin Ferguson, to Assistant Treasurer, Chris Bowen warning the planned FuelWatch price monitoring system will fail working families, crush small businesses and tarnish the Government’s economic reform credentials. Ferguson immediately told ABC radio it was part of a Cabinet discussion and he had accepted the majority view that FuelWatch will help motorists.
A Senate Estimate hearing is told by ASIO director-general Paul O’Sullivan the US sent Australian terror suspect Mamdouh Habib for interrogation in Egypt against the repeated pleas by the Howard Government not to do so. The fear was Habib would be tortured, which he was.
13 May – First Budget of Rudd Government brought down.
11 May – Treasurer Wayne Swan announces sweeping inquiry into tax system but GST excluded from terms of reference. Treasury head, Ken Henry, to chair inquiry which draws criticism by Shadow Treasurer Malcolm Turnbull.
7 May – Barak Obama wins easily by 14 points in North Carolina primary while in Indiana Hilary Clinton won by a mere 2 points. Big majority of delegates said the primary race was all over and Obama was the easy winner. Clinton says she will fight on.
3 May – NSW Premier Morris Iemma booed and hissed at NSW ALP State Conference. Delegates overwhelmingly rejected his plan to privatise state electricity
generation and retailing industries. Iemma says he will defy conference and proceed.
29 April – Water Minister Penny Wong announces extra $3 billion for $10 billion Murray-Darling Basin scheme.
28 April – Australian solider, Lance Corporal Jason Marks killed in Afghanistan in engagement with Taliban. Rudd comments Australia in Afghanistan for long haul but “it’s not a blank cheque”.
15 April – Rudd announces national FuelWatch scheme designed to remove daily changes to petrol prices.
13 April – Rudd, home in Australia, announces nation to get its first female Governor- General, with the announcement that Quentin Bryce, the Governor of Queensland, will take up the post following the resignation of Major General Michael Jeffery. Ms Bryce is a former Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner, inaugural Director of the Queensland Women's Information Service and founding chair and Chief Executive Officer of the National Childcare Accreditation Council.
12 April – Rudd has talks with Chinese President, Hu Jintao in China at Asian leaders meeting. Chinese Government not changing policy on Tibet.
11 April – Kevin Rudd in discussion with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf
at an Asian leaders meeting in southern China. He urges Musharraf to do more to counter Taliban in Pakistan’s cross-border refuges.
10 April – Kevin Rudd in Beijing meets Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao who rejects his criticism of human rights in Tibet. Jiabao agrees to keep talking on free trade deal and climate change measures.
9 April – Kevin Rudd, in Peking addressed students of Peking University in Mandarin and repeated his criticisms, made 5 April in the US of China’s human rights. His comments drew widespread rebukes from Chinese officials.
Rudd warns that any attempt by China to buy a stake in BHP Billiton would raise the issue of Australia’s national interest.
7 April – Rudd in London meets Gordon Brown at 10 Downing St and The Queen.
4 April – Kevin Rudd visits Bucharest for NATO talks. Says Australia is in Afghanistan for the long haul, but it is not an open cheque and dependent on a changed strategy and greater troop numbers by some NATO countries.
3 April – Broadband Minister, Stephen Conroy announces dumping of $1 billion funding of the Opel network (Optus-Elders joint venture) broadband. Seen as making way for Government’s $4.7 billion national broadband plan.
2 April – Draft code of behaviour covering lobbying released.
31 March – Rudd visits New York for talks with Ban Ki-moon and later announces Australia will be seeking a seat on US Security Council.
30 March – Rudd meets Bush at White House. At joint press conference, Bush says he has no problem with Rudd withdrawing troops from Iraq and said he was happy to dub Rudd “the man of steel” as he had similarly described Howard. Both agree the US-Aust alliance remains strong after change of government in Australia.
At press conference, Rudd, in answering questions from Japanese Journalist, admits he had not phoned the Japanese PM since Rudd won the election in November.
27 March – Rudd departs on overseas visit to the United States, Britain/Europe and China.
26 March – COAG meets in Adelaide and agreement is reached on Murray-Darling Basin water plan with an extra $1 billion going to Victoria. Limited progress in federal-state agreement on running and funding hospitals.
Rudd makes major foreign relations speech.
25 March – Story breaks that Port hacking branch of the Liberal Party in the electorate of Cook held by Liberal MP Scott Morrison was refused Morrison membership of the branch. Widespread calls within the Liberal Party to reform the NSW division now dominated by the extreme right faction.
20 March – Professor Ross Garnaut produces final advice to Government on emission trading, recommending that permits for emitting greenhouse gases be auctioned, that the resulting revenue stream be used to help those most in need and no compensation for power generators. Report welcomed by Climate Institute.
17 March – Climate change Minister Penny Wong announces timetable leading to 2010 emissions trading.
Federal Reserve cuts interest rate by 0.75% in US. Market expectations were for a full 1.0% reduction.
14 March – US credit crisis worsens with Federal Reserve and JP Morgan provided emergency 28 day line of credit to Bear Stearns, the fifth largest Wall St investment bank.
12 March – Westpac-Melbourne Institute reports consumer confidence has plummeted by 21% in the past three months.
11 March – Government backs down on carers and seniors one off bonus payments and promises to continue them in next Budget.
Caucus carries Rudd on voices resolution that its rules be changed so that the Leader selects a Labor Cabinet or Shadow Cabinet.
10 March – Rudd reassures carers and seniors they will not be worse off in the May Budget. This follows leaks Government to dump one of payments in Howard Government’s Budget in May 2007.
Rudd announces $53 million campaign against binge drinking by teenagers. This will fund tough ad campaign aimed at binge drinking and tougher restrictions on alcohol advertising.
6 March – Rudd on two-day visit to Papua New Guinea. Meets with PNG Prime Minister Michael Somare to restore relations damaged during the Howard Government years. Rudd emphasises that the future of the Kokoda Track is entirely a matter for PNG.
4 March – Reserve Bank again raises interest rates by 0.25%. Banks are expected to put rates up even higher.
News poll shows Brendan Nelson’s rating at all time low for an Opposition Leader – 7%.
24 February – In a Herald Sun interview, Howard’s former IR Minister, Kevin Andrews said no one in the Cabinet saw the warning lights at the time the Work Choices policy was being drawn up.
22 February – Wild scenes in the House of Representatives as Opposition MPs object to a Friday sitting with no question time. Life size cardboard cutouts of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd displayed in deliberate defiance of Speaker Jenkins' ruling.
Defence Minister, Joel Fitzgibbon announces next Defence White Paper will be authored by Deputy Secretary of the Defence Department, Mike Pezzullo, a former staffer to Kim Beazley.
21 February – Professor Ross Garnaut’s preliminary report on climate change released, calling for much more urgent and tougher actions than anticipated.
18 February – Four Corners program featuring Liberal ministers discussing Howard’s role in election defeat.
17 February – Wayne Swan announces increased scrutiny of applications for investment in Australia of government-controlled sovereign wealth funds. This followed the recent move by the 100% Chinese Government owned Chinalco to take a $15.4 billion state in Rio Tinto.
13 February – House of Representatives passes historic ‘sorry’ motion for the suffering of the stolen generations.
12 February – 42nd Parliament meets for the first time since the Rudd Government’s election win. Members of the House of Representatives sworn. Governor-General opens Parliament.
11 February – Assassination attempt on East Timor President, Jose Ramos Horta. He is flown to Darwin hospital in serious condition. Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao escaped unhurt after a similar attempt on his life.
Grave warning by Reserve Bank in its quarterly statement of continued inflation risk.
5 February – Reserve Bank increases interest rates, the seventh since the 2004 election. PM Kevin Rudd and Treasurer, Wayne Swan blames the increase on the Howard Government.
Mitsubishi announces closure of its Adelaide car production plant after 27 years of operation.
At press conference with the Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Australian Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith repeats the Australian Government’s decades old bipartisan policy of recognising only one China, the China with its Government in Beijing. Smith joins President Bush and UK PM Gordon Brown in condemning proposal for a referendum in Taiwan to seek separate membership of the United Nations.
31 January – US Federal Reserve cuts rates by 0.5%, twice as much as market anticipated. A modest market recovery resulted, but not nearly enough to wipe out the $160 billion slump in January alone.
23 January – Underlying inflation in December quarter surges to 3.4%, well above Reserve Bank's target of 2% - 3%. US Federal Reserve unexpectedly cuts interest rates 0.75%. Partial recovery on Australian stock market.
22 January – Australian stock market crashes 7%. Loses $96 billion.
20 January – Cabinet in Perth for first meeting of the year. Rudd holds community meeting with members of the public.
21 January – Rudd holds press conference after Cabinet meeting and outlines government’s plans to attack inflation, boost infrastructure with new advisory body, Infrastructure Australia.
14 January – Wayne Swan meets state and territory Treasurers and Health Ministers to discuss distribution of $150 m., first tranche of $600 m. federal package to reduce hospital waiting lists.
8 January – Treasurer Wayne Swan describes as “excessive” ANZ bank’s decision to increase its variable interest rate to borrowers by 0.2%, twice as high as the increase by NAB.
Cricket Australia buckles to Indian demands and sacks Jamaican Steve Buck following demands for his removal by Indian officials. Singh to appeal his sentence and will be able to play in all tests until appeal heard. Tour proceeds, but Indian cricket authorities emphasise they will be continuously monitoring the tour.
7 January – News breaks International Cricket Board suspended Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh for three test matches. He was accused of calling Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds ‘monkey’ during second test in Sydney. Outrage in India. Indian cricket officials threaten to call off tour.
