How you can get rich and make money in 2023 as inflation soars and house prices ... trends now

Smart Australians can take advantage of unique conditions and make money in 2023 despite cost of living pressures and surging interest rates.

Those able to find enough savings may still have some success on the share market next year, provided they invest wisely and focus on companies they are likely to have healthy earnings. 

The property market is expected to struggle but savers and canny investors have some good prospects as global political turmoil pushes up demand for key Australian commodities.

Mining shares are expected to surge in 2023 because of a shortage of key commodities needed for both traditional, coal-fired energy and renewable power.

Coal prices in 2022 more than doubled to record highs above $US400 a tonne after Russia's Ukraine invasion saw much of Europe scramble for new energy supplies, as gas supplies were squeezed.

Commodity prices like iron ore and metallurgical coal, used to make steel, are also expected to remain in hot demand as China scraps hated Covid restrictions, benefitting diversified mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto.

The strong push for electric vehicles in China and Europe is also expected to see demand surge for lithium, needed for battery storage, with lesser-known Australian companies set to do well.

Coal is expected to thrive next year, despite the push for renewable energy. 

But high inflation is likely to persist into 2023, which means house prices are likely to continue plunging as interest rates keep on rising.

House price falls of 20 per cent are predicted for Australia, with the Reserve Bank's eight successive monthly rate rises far from the last.

Inflation in the year to September surged by 7.3 per cent - the steepest increase in 32 years and at a level more than double the RBA's 2 to 3 per cent target.

The Reserve Bank is expecting headline inflation, also known as the consumer price index, to hit reach 8 per cent by the end of 2022 for the first time since 1990. 

With inflation likely to remain a problem in 2023, Daily Mail Australia looks at where you should invest your money on the Australian Securities Exchange as real estate becomes a less attractive option.

Shares

Saxo market strategist Jessica Amir said mining shares - from the diversified mining giants like BHP and Rio Tinto - to the specialist coal, iron ore and lithium miners were likely to thrive in 2023.

'You don't have to look far: you just have to say, 'What is gaining momentum?' and think about the long-term trends,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'What is going to do well when interest rates keep on rising and what company is going to be able to continue to grow their earnings and cash flow? 

'Because that's how you get continued share price growth.'

BHP shares from late October to late December surged by 24 per cent to $46 while Rio Tinto during that time soared 30 per cent to $115.

Fortescue Metals Group has seen its price climb 40 per cent to $20.60 since the end of October. 

Russia's Ukraine invasion led to sanctions from the EU, and constrained the supply of Russian gas to Europe.

This has seen demand surge for thermal coal, despite a push for renewable energy, with the spot price of coal rising above $US400 a tonne.

India and Indonesia, meanwhile, have become major buyers of Australian coal, filling the void left by China when it slapped punitive tariffs on the lucrative Australian export in 2020 following calls for an inquiry into the origins of Covid.

Ms Amir said the strong demand for thermal coal was likely to benefit not just BHP and Rio Tinto, but also specialist thermal coal miners Whitehaven and New Hope, as the northern hemisphere endured a freezing winter.

'We've been alerting investors to the fact that there is more upside in coal and the reason for that is we usually see a volume demand spike in January - it's the thick of winter in the northern hemisphere,' she said.

Metallurgical coal miner Coronado Global Resources and iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group would be the main beneficiaries of China needing more metallurgical coal and iron ore, following with unwinding of Covid restrictions.