Port Moresby's bubble has burst

Most businessmen admit Port Moresby is having a recession. For the first time in years there are houses and business premises for lease, there is no building boom, property values have levelled out. Those agents making money do it by selling land in Queensland to Territorians anxious about Mr. Whitlam’s independence noises. Construction companies are unhappy; some of them may go broke in the next few months. Sales of expensive consumer items, like radios, tape recorders and cameras, have plunged steeply and some retailers are feeling the pinch. The banks are looking hard at overdrafts. The Administration is taking longer to pay its bills, and generally ordering less. P-NG has had a s3m. budget cut this year—but s2m. of it was extra money earmarked for the Arawa town development, Bougainville, so its loss is not relevant to Morseby’s recession. What’s happened is that there is a change of emphasis in P-NG development.

The government is spending on two big developments, the Bougainville copper project and the Highlands Highway. Money is not available for smaller jobs in many areas, including Moresby. Furthermore, localisation in the public service and private enterprise is beginning to have its affect in Moresby. Local people have a different spending pattern and the demand for luxury goods will probably continue to drop. Port Moresby’s bubble has finally burst. But that’s not a bad thing; Moresby is not heading for depression. It’s merely going to become part of a developing New Guinea rather than a booming suburb of Canberra. —Stuart Inder.