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Ben Phillips

Ben Phillips

Associate Professor, Centre for Social Research and Methods, Director, Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), Research School of Economics, Australian National University
Ben is an Associate Professor at the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods and the Director of the Research School of Economics' Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Ben leads the microsimulation modelling team at the Centre for Social Research and Methods (CSRM) which produces the PolicyMod model of the Australian Tax and Transfer system. The team recently modelled the 2018-19 Federal Budget and has undertaken a number of modelling projects modelling the Australian childcare system.

Prior to this Ben was Principal Research Fellow at NATSEM where he led STINMOD, NATSEM's static microsimulation model of Australia's income tax and transfer system. Ben's main interest is the application of social and economic models to important social and economic policy matters such as income inequality, social exclusion, housing affordability and demographic change, taxation and social security and policy development.

Ben has published several reports with AMP in the areas of the cost of living, housing affordability, childcare and household debt.

Ben has a wide range of experience in both the public and private sector over the past 20 years in the field of economics and statistics. Prior to working with NATSEM and the ANU, Ben was a senior economist with the Housing Industry Association where he was responsible for housing and economic forecasting within the Economics Group. Ben also played an integral role in developing housing policy and analysis for housing affordability. He presented widely to conferences, industry groups and had a large media presence.

Ben has also worked as a methodologist with the Australia Bureau of Statistics for five years and an economic forecaster with the Bureau of Tourism Research.

Yes, childcare is costly, but nowhere near as costly as recent reports suggest – here's why

Oct 31, 2023 09:15 am UTC| Life

Childcare in Australia is generally regarded as expensive. And its true that prices charged by some centres, particularly long daycare centres, can be pretty steep, climbing to as much as A$200 per day or more in...

Higher prices have hit most people but homeowners have felt it harder than renters

Aug 24, 2023 07:16 am UTC| Economy

Cost of living pressures are acute for some, but in different ways for different types of household. The Australian Bureau of Statistics consumer price index has climbed by 6% per year for each of the past two...

Rent crisis? Average rents are increasing less than you might think

Sep 05, 2022 04:23 am UTC| Economy Real Estate

You wouldnt know it from the pages of our daily newspapers, but the rate of growth in rents has been pretty modest. Not everywhere, not for everyone, but for most Australians who rent. According to the most recent...

Inflation isn't the 6.1% they say it is – for many of us, it is much lower

Aug 04, 2022 04:46 am UTC| Economy

We learnt last week inflation is officially 6.1% way above the average over the past 20 years of 2.5%. This is right in the middle of the Reserve Banks 2-3% target band. But although the rate is now 6.1%, not everybody...

Those future tax cut promises... they're nowhere near as big as you'd think

Apr 08, 2019 05:31 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy

The 2018 budget contained big tax measures worth A$143 billion over the next decade initially targeted at lower and middle income Australians, but after five or so years to be heavily weighted towards higher income...

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Economy

Asian Stocks Mixed as OpenAI Revenue Concerns Hit Chipmakers

Asian stock markets traded unevenly on Friday as semiconductor shares declined following fresh concerns about OpenAIs revenue outlook, while rising oil prices and volatile bond markets weighed on investor sentiment. The...

Gold Prices Rise as Dollar Weakens, Treasury Yields Fall

Gold prices climbed during Asian trading on Friday, supported by a weaker U.S. dollar and falling Treasury yields, as investors assessed inflation concerns driven by rising oil prices and expectations of further Federal...

Asian Currencies Steady as Dollar Eyes Fourth Weekly Gain

Asian currencies traded largely flat on Friday as the U.S. dollar headed for its fourth consecutive weekly gain, supported by expectations that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates again before the end of 2026....

US, EU Push for Action Against Asia’s Excess Factory Capacity

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Thursday that European Union countries have reached a broad consensus on the need to address global manufacturing overcapacity, particularly in Asia, as concerns grow over its...

Wall Street Falls as Oil Prices Rise and Tech Stocks Slide

Wall Street stocks declined for a second consecutive session on Thursday as rising oil prices, Treasury market volatility, and concerns over OpenAIs revenue outlook weighed on investor sentiment. At 13:07 ET, the SP 500...

Politics

Ripple Chairman Chris Larsen Donates $22.5 Million Ahead of US Midterms

Ripple Executive Chairman Chris Larsen has contributed at least $22.5 million to federal candidates and political action committees (PACs) during the current election cycle, strengthening his influence in US politics ahead...

Venezuela’s Machado Calls for Elections by July 2027

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has called for presidential elections in Venezuela next year, saying the country has sufficient time to organize a vote by July 2027, according to a Financial Times report...

RFK Jr. Launches Nationwide Vaccine Safety Review

US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has launched a department-wide initiative to investigate and document reported health problems following vaccination, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced...

Zelenskiy Slams US Over Deadly Russian Strikes on Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy criticized the United States for its reluctance to provide additional military support after Russian airstrikes killed dozens of civilians across Ukraine, intensifying tensions over...

Flavio Bolsonaro Leads Lula 49%-45% in Brazil Runoff Poll

Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro holds a narrow lead over President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ahead of the October 25 presidential runoff election, according to a Datafolha poll released Thursday. However, the results...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Zcash Plans Quantum-Resistant Security Upgrade for January

Zcash (ZEC) developers are preparing to introduce quantum-resistant security features in January 2027, aiming to protect cryptocurrency wallets against potential threats from advanced quantum computing and artificial...

Apple Cuts iPhone 18 Pro Production Orders Amid Weak Demand

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has reportedly instructed several suppliers to reduce component production for its newly released iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, signaling potential challenges for the companys latest...

OpenAI Revenue Hits $50 Billion, Below Earlier $70 Billion Estimate

OpenAI has informed investors that its annualized revenue reached nearly $50 billion in September, significantly below the $70 billion previously indicated, according to a Reuters report on Thursday. The revised figure...

Trump Buys Up to $25M in Meta Stock, Invests in SpaceX Debt

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) shares briefly climbed more than 1% after President Donald Trumps latest financial disclosure revealed a stock purchase worth up to $25 million. The shares later trimmed their gains as...

OpenAI Annualized Revenue Hits $50 Billion, Below Earlier Estimates

OpenAIs annualized revenue reached approximately $50 billion by the end of September 2026, significantly below the $70 billion previously reported to investors, according to financial documents reviewed by the Financial...
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