Glossary

RAG (Red / Amber / Green)

A traffic-light rating applied to each metric. GREEN = favourable trend within an acceptable band of the baseline; AMBER = flat or mild change; RED = unfavourable trend beyond threshold.

RAG is computed monthly from each metric's score (0–100) and configured thresholds. It is **not** related to Retrieval-Augmented Generation — this is a UK government-style traffic-light convention.

See also: score · baseline · directionality

Score (0–100)

A normalised value per metric per month, computed from the underlying observation and the metric's baseline and direction.

See also: rag · baseline

Composite score

A weighted national index combining the latest score from each category. Weights are configurable and visible in the methodology.

See also: score · category

Baseline

The reference value (typically a multi-year average) against which a metric's current reading is judged for the RAG rating.

See also: rag · score

Trend window

The number of months of recent history used to determine the metric's direction (improving / stable / deteriorating).

See also: rag · score

Directionality

Whether "up" is good or bad for a given metric. Examples: GDP growth is higher_is_better; unemployment is lower_is_better.

See also: rag · baseline

Carry-forward

For metrics published less often than monthly (e.g. quarterly GDP), the most recent published value is repeated each month until the next release. These months are shown as a dashed line on the chart.

See also: observation · native-frequency

Observation

A single data point — a value with a date, attached to a metric (and optionally a dimension such as state). Native observations come at the publisher's frequency; monthly observations are derived (carried forward).

See also: carry-forward · native-frequency

Native frequency

The frequency at which the publisher actually releases the metric (monthly, quarterly, annual). We don't fabricate intermediate readings.

See also: carry-forward · observation

Dimension

A split of a metric — for example unemployment by state, or population by origin country.

OSB-14 (Observed Staples Basket)

A 14-item grocery basket whose shelf prices are scraped weekly from Coles and Woolworths Sydney metro. Tracks indexed price change since the base month.

OSB-14 is independent of the main composite index — it is shown separately on /cost-of-staples.

Category

A top-level grouping for metrics. Current categories: Economic, Housing, Business, Fiscal, Health, Society & Education, Demographics, Innovation, plus Government Services (tracked, not scored into the composite).

See also: composite-score

Political period

A government term (federal or state) shown as a coloured overlay band on time-series charts. Bands are descriptive context only — they don't imply causation.

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics)

Australia's official statistical agency — source for CPI, labour force, housing, and population data.

RBA (Reserve Bank of Australia)

Australia's central bank — source for interest rates, exchange rates, and monetary aggregates.

AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare)

Government health agency — source for health outcomes, aged care, and disability support data.