NAB CEO Andrew Irvine on Australia’s economic outlook and the year ahead for business

12 January 2026
Economy and Markets

NAB Group CEO Andrew Irvine said Australia’s economy remained in good shape heading into 2026.

“I have hope for our nation and remain optimistic for the year ahead,” Mr Irvine said. 

“Backed by strong employment, the economy continues to do well, and we don’t expect more stimulus or another rate cut right now,” Mr Irvine said.

“The question for the Reserve Bank is going to be: does it need to put a little bit of a handbrake on that growth? The challenge is that we don’t have any excess capacity”. 

"Finding ways to help productivity is going to be important to help the economy grow faster,” he said. Mr Irvine expressed a strong need for social cohesion. He also warned rising intergenerational inequality threatens Australia’s long-standing promise of a better future for the next generation and called for urgent action to reverse the trend.

“In Australia, for the last hundred years this has been one of the best countries in the world to live and people could have confidence that their children would have a better life than them. I think for the first time that is uncertain and that’s a problem. I think it is fixable,” he said.

Mr Irvine also noted the devastating impact of the Bondi attack, adding it had weighed heavily on many Australians as the year began.

Looking more inwardly at the business community, Mr Irvine highlighted the need for a shift in Australia’s approach to business risk, advocating for stronger support systems for entrepreneurs and growth lending to foster innovation and competitiveness.

“Bankruptcy in Australia is still viewed as failure by many. In the US, failure is almost seen as a rite of passage and many entrepreneurs have failed twice or more. In Australia we don’t have as much venture capital and banks don’t do much growth lending due to our risk settings. More incentives to help businesses to start and grow are also needed.”