How Did The Great Depression Affect The Australian Economy

It is well recognised that World War 1 was a traumatic experience for the Australian nation. It claimed 60,000 young lives and another 156,000 men were wounded, gassed, or taken prisoner. But when the trauma abated, it became apparent that Australian society had been changed permanently and positively. Some of the gains realised by Australia as a result of her involvement in WWI included a newfound maturity as a nation, the respect and recognition of other nations, new opportunities for trade and industry, a greater recognition of women’s rights and a massive economic and population boost due to post war immigration programs. This web-site has been created to show you some of the benefits of World War One on Australia.

By the end of the 1920's the Stock Market was flourishing. In 1928 the New York Stock Exchange was trading at about six to seven million shares a day. Many economists warned about the dangers of rising prices. People disregarded this information and speculation increased about the Stock Market being the easy way to make money. People invested their life's savings. Banks too invested large sums of money into the Stock Market.

During the 1920's millions of Americans began investing in stocks for the first time. They heard about how rich people were getting by investing so they all decided to do it. Many new investors entered the stock market using borrowed money. Stock market prices rose steadily as inflated market demand outpaced increases in the capital value of businesses. Investors began to realize that a large imbalance existed between stock prices and the amount of money needed to back them up, and began to sell. On October 29, 1929, great numbers of people tried to sell their stocks all at once. This created chaos in the accounting of stocks and for brokers. The New York Stock Exchange and other exchanges prices dropped so dramatically that this event became known as the crash of 1929. Millions of investors lost their savings in the crash and many were deeply in debt since

Compared to earlier times the composition and direction of Australia’s major imports and exports contrasts majorly with Australia’s contemporary trade. In the 1900 Australia’s primary trading partners were European countries

Politically the great depression hit Australia hard, as many Australians lost confidence in their government representatives. A number of radical or extremist organizations gather strength and popularity as a result of the large scale public dissatisfaction. In Australia the developing of the new capital Canberra was put to a stop leaving a population of 7,000 in limbo, workers were laid off and the federal capital commission was abolished. The Sydney harbor bridge was a great way of bringing employment back into Australia during the depression. At the time of the war and after the great depression it was Australian best interest to have an alliance with Great Britain. Australia needed to form an alliance with Great Britain during World War II, because if the war ended up near or in Australia, we would need the help from Great Britain and their allies. Having Great Britain as its ally at that time was the right thing to do as it protected its colonies from the imperil japan and other foreign invaders. During the period of 1942 Australia was extremely worried as the fall of Singapore in February 1942 and had the threat of a possibility of a Japanese

For many years now, Australia’s trade has continually been evolving and improving. Throughout most of the 1900’s, Britain was Australia’s main trading partner. Trade with Britain was 5 times greater than with

Why the stock market crashed, was due to two factors, economic and financial. For example economic factors where, poor distribution of wealth, many consumers relied on credit, credit dried up, consumer spending dropped and industries struggled. Financial factors were a threat to the stock market rise in the mid-1920s. Speculation in stock

In many parts of Australia the supply of food and services was a difficult job, especially since most women and men were abroad fighting or serving for their country. Most men left to some armed force jobs leaving job opportunities valid. Bid industries had to supply these men with ammunition and a supply of clothing during war. This time was particularly controlled by the government on how they are distributing the amounts of goods. Sooner or later Australia was out of enough goods and supplies to provide for everyone. When the Japanese captured countries that exported teas and other food items the soldiers used to drink their supply went low. When American troops arrived in Australia many of them required a sufficient amount of food. To make sure that everyone was sent the same amount of supplies and goods the government came up with a rationing system. To do this everyone requires a coupon to buy a particular amount of food. Although many of the people were in pain during this time, they felt that the system was helpful and fair. On May 1942 the government decided to ration items to do with clothing, before this many Australians rushed in markets to get the most closed out before the rationing began. People were encouraged to be dependant on their own farms when they were growing vegetables. People had to do everything

The stock market crash of 1929, additionally called the Great Crash, was a sharp decrease in U.S. stock exchange values in 1929 that added to the Great Depression of the 1930s. The market accident was a consequence of various economic imbalances and structural failings (Pettinger). In the 1920s, there was a fast development in bank credit and advances. Energized by the quality of the economy, individuals felt the share

In August 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, an immense wave of support flooded Britain from her ally, Australia. All Australian political parties, community leaders, newspapers and churches were on-board with this major movement to help the mother country. All believed it was a morally right and necessary commitment . World War I, 1914 – 1918 had a significant and long lasting impact on the Australian home front. ‘The civilian population ’ had to undergo many changes to cater for the war. At this time women’s push for a larger role in the war effort caused a significant and long lasting impact on the Australian home front, which has helped shape workplace gender equality today. Conscription also impacted the Australian home front, meaning, compulsory enlistment of people in military service. As well as the massive impact on Australia’s economy from the many trading cancellations through abandoned or cut off allies, which has helped build Australia’s economy to what it is today.

Whether or not the term 'Roaring Twenties' is an adequate description of the character of Australian society from 1920 to 1929 depends on the circumstances of the Australian population in this decade, because 'Roaring' implies the 1920's were full of dramatic social changes, which may have came about from spontaneous economical or political incidences and new inventions. In the 1920s Australian politics was dominated by the conservative parties and, despite some industrial discontent and hardship, the economy was prosperous and expanding. Australian society was experiencing changes and new developments in many fields. The use of electricity during the twenties became much more common, and it dramatically altered the lives of people living

economy, people began buying stocks on the margin. They would borrow most of the stock’s price from a stockbroker and only pay a little bit of the price. If the stock prices kept rising, this system would work well, but if the prices fell, people could not pay the loan back. Near the end of the 1929 year, prices were too high, so people wanted to sell their stocks. They thought the prices would lower soon. Stock prices did go lower and people were not buying. They all wanted to sell their stocks. Prices went even lower on October 29, where 16 million stocks were sold. This caused the collapse of the market.

<br>Stock prices had been rising steadily since 1921, but in 1928 and 1929 they surged forward, with the average price of stocks rising over 40 percent. The stock market was totally unregulated. Margin buying in particular proceeded at a feverish pace as customers borrowed up to 75 percent of the purchase price of stocks. That easy credit lured more speculators and less creditworthy investors

| * * outline the impact of the main technological changes over time on everyday life in post-war Australia, based on a selection of sources

From the reforms came a radical change in New Zealand trade. In 1984 the Government devalued the New Zealand Dollar by 20%, then in 1985 introduced a floating exchange rate. Along with that, the removal of agricultural subsidies and import tariffs. It allowed New Zealand to be a fairer country to trade with. As a direct result, the trade competitive index jumped from 0.72 on 1985 to 0.98 in 1987. Foreign investment increased as the New Zealand Dollar strengthened against the ‘green back’ and the pound. Consequently, importing and exporting firms benefited from the change in policies.