Alan Oster will retire from NAB as Chief Economist after 32 years in the role.
Alan, who will finish at NAB at the end of March 2025, has been a pivotal figure in the Australian economics industry for more than 45 years. He joined NAB in 1992 and has built a respected Economics function, renowned for its high-quality research and insights.
NAB Group Chief Financial Officer Nathan Goonan said Alan’s contributions over the past three decades had been invaluable.
“Alan Oster’s decision to retire marks the end of an era for NAB. He has been hugely influential through his thoughtful commentary and analysis and has been a trusted advisor to many,” Mr Goonan said.
“His expertise and views, particularly through the NAB Business Survey, are highly sought after by our bank, our customers, government and policy makers. We are grateful for his service and wish him the very best in his well-deserved retirement.”
Alan said it had been a fantastic job, building and working with a great team at NAB.
“Thank you to NAB’s customers for your engagement with the independent views provided over a long time. My thanks also to the NAB Economics team for your dedication and support,” Mr Oster said.
“Throughout the journey there have been some big moments I will never forget, including the GFC and Covid pandemic.”
On his most memorable period, Alan pointed to his involvement in analysing the economic impact of the pandemic.
“The sharpness of the decline was like nothing we had seen. In response we quickly began turning around transactions data weekly to help both the bank and the Government understand the impact on businesses and the consumer. Alongside our modelling, it enabled a faster, deeper understanding of what was really happening to the economy.
“It was different to anything we’d done before – and it was critical work.”
NAB is pleased to announce Sally Auld will succeed Alan as Chief Economist on his retirement. Sally is a highly-regarded economist and currently the Chief Investment Officer at JBWere. She will start a transition process on 17 February 2025.
“We are delighted to appoint Sally Auld as our new Chief Economist. Sally’s extensive experience and credentials in economic and financial market research make her the ideal candidate to continue Alan’s legacy and lead our Economics function into the future. Her appointment reinforces our commitment to internal succession planning,” Mr Goonan said.
