Editor's note

In the early days of Western mathematics, there was no such thing as a negative number. Even after the idea was imported from India and China, negative numbers were known as “absurd numbers” because it was thought that for practical purposes no-one would need a number less than zero.

That’s how many of us feel about negative interest rates today. Yet “quantitative easing”, adopted in Japan, the US, the UK and Europe, has as good as brought it about – pouring enough money into the economy to achieve the effect of an official interest rate below zero. It’ll happen here if the Reserve Bank needs to cut much further. This morning Stephen Kirchner explains how the process would work and argues there’s nothing to be frightened of. He says the key takeaway from the US experience is to be bold.

Also, just a reminder we still need readers, like you, to give to our 2019 donations campaign. If you’ve already donated, thank you! If you haven’t, please give today.

Peter Martin AM

Section Editor, Business and Economy

Top story

Road tested. Quantitative easing worked in the US, and can work even better here. Shutterstock

Below zero is “reverse”. How the Reserve Bank would make quantitative easing work

Stephen Kirchner, University of Sydney

There's nothing unusual about quantitative easing. Our biggest mistake would be to be to wait.

An activist scales a coal heap in Queensland to protest against Australia’s intensive fossil fuel use. AAP Image/supplied

How to answer the argument that Australia’s emissions are too small to make a difference

Matt McDonald, The University of Queensland

Yes, Australia's greenhouse emissions are a small part of the global total. But we're a rich, emissions-intensive country that could and should be setting a much better example to the world.

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