The government is trying to strike a delicate balance in the economy, getting inflation down without sending the country into recession, says Greg Jericho.

Isn't a surplus in the current economic climate a good thing? What causes productivity growth? And how do other nations measure unemployment? On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Greg Jericho answers your questions and explains why some commentators are getting giddy for Canadian rate cuts.

Greg Jericho is Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work and popular columnist of Grogonomics with Guardian Australia. Each week on Dollars & Sense, Greg dives into the latest economic figures to explain what they can tell us about what’s happening in the economy, how it will impact you and where things are headed.

australiainstitute.org.au // @theausinstitute

Host: Greg Jericho, Chief Economist, the Australia Institute and Centre for Future Work // @GrogsGamut

Producer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermacey

Theme music: Blue Dot Sessions

We’d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au.