The resources boom It is now well understood that the “mining boom” is shifting gear, and that we are entering a new phase. The story of the boom has always had three phases.2 In the first phase, commodity prices rose to very high levels. As a result, Australia’s terms of trade rose to levels not seen in a very long time.
These prices had a hiatus in 2009 with the global downturn but resumed their upward trend quite quickly. 1  See Anika Foundation. 2  See Stevens G (2012), “Producing Prosperity”, RBA Bulletin, December pp 81–87.