Special Report: Reading the market

Market jitters and cost pressures are prompting the question: is the current boom sustainable?

There has been an almost unparalleled number of floats and other capital raising in the past six months, with nearly 30 Western Australian companies raising more than $130 million and accumulating a combined market capitalisation of more than $290 million

With the rapid rise of base metal prices during the first half of 2006, it wasn't a question of if there would be a correction, but when.

Despite recent fluctuations in the market nationally, the resources-led Western Australian economy continues to demonstrate its resilience.

Having ridden the crest of a seemingly endless wave of positive sentiment and upward movement, the Australian Stock Exchange recently showed its first major signs of vulnerability in more than three years.

Despite a 10-year high in business confidence, more than half of businesses in Western Australia believe another interest rate rise will take a toll on the state's bustling economy, according to the CCI-BankWest survey of business expectations for the Jun