- Analysis
- Interest rates
Ugly CPI data shows why rate cuts are a distant prospect
CPI report suggests fears about sticky inflation are becoming a reality, leaving the RBA board’s decision last month to abandon its stated tightening bias looking premature.
Budget reality check for Chalmers after high home-grown inflation
“Unrelenting” domestic price pressures boosted consumer inflation in the first three months of 2024, while Treasurer Jim Chalmers would not be drawn on whether the May budget would add to demand.
Lynas boss leaves door ajar for rare earths mega-merger
Lynas boss Amanda Lacaze says there may be a time when big rare earths makes sense and confirms she is a great admirer of Gina Rinehart and her commitment to mining.
Woodside climate plan sunk but Goyder survives
The proxy battle pitched Australia’s largest gas producer against activists that argue its path could tip the balance towards more dangerous climate change.
- Live
- Markets Live
ASX trims gains after robust CPI; Perpetual drops
Shares flat at the closing bell; $A, bond yields jump as CPI data beat forecasts; Cleanaway denies speculation about Seven takeover offer; Perpetual books $5.2b in net outflows. Follow here for more.
Top silk to represent Musk in eSafety fight
Top Sydney silk Bret Walker SC will represent Elon Musk in his battle against Australia’s eSafety Commission; counter-terror police conduct raids after church attack. Follow updates live.
Former Star CEO says he felt ‘under assault’ from casino regulator
Robbie Cooke left last month after NSW officials made it clear they did not think he was moving fast enough to fix governance and cultural issues at the group.
Wealth Generation: News and views to help aspirational investors grow their wealth. In your inbox every Wednesday.
Big reads
- Investigation
- Food & drink
Jon Adgemis’ high-wire act is coming unstuck
The former KPMG dealmaker burst onto the hospitality sector after buying up a string of venues. Huge debts and angry lenders are threatening to push it over.
Can the NRL’s worst team finally turn itself around?
To say the Wests Tigers have underperformed over the past two decades would be an understatement. Shane Richardson has a plan to change the team’s fortunes.
Can Pollination really become the next ‘green’ Macquarie?
The fledgling investment bank has lofty ambitions and a high-profile roster of executives. But it also has plenty of competition for climate dollars.
- Investigation
- Gaming & wagering
Laurence Escalante is living large off controversial gambling billions
At 42, he is one of the country’s youngest billionaires. But Virtual Gaming Worlds investors hoping for a big payday are increasingly concerned it may not come.
Golf ranges are booming on weekdays. Welcome to the WFH economy
Most office workers now spend some of their week working from home. Remote working is changing the way we live and do business.
Get the latest business news on the go with the AFR’s new iOS app.
Companies
Fortescue playing catch up on iron ore shipments
The Andrew Forrest-led miner is adamant it can hit the lower end of guidance for shipments in 2023-24, despite its problems over the past three months.
- Updated
- Gaming & wagering
‘Not a scenario’: Star concedes it’s unfit to operate Sydney
The gaming giant’s chairman has also told a NSW inquiry that he was “trigger-happy” when he sent messages suggesting the regulator be scrapped.
Sims says ‘high cost’ Australia-made fixation threatens green steel
The federal government’s “Made in Australia” policy threatens to destroy the country’s chance at making “green” steel, economist Rod Sims says.
- Exclusive
- Infrastructure
Plenary Group sells 49pc stake to sovereign wealth fund ADQ in $1b deal
Founders and some executives of the infrastructure investor will receive a windfall after getting a cash injection from the Abu Dhabi investment group.
Seven Group says talk of Cleanaway buyout ‘completely untrue’
Shares in Australia’s largest waste collection company surged 15.8 per cent, to a two-year-high, after reports that the conglomerate was contemplating a bid.
First Sentier shuts fixed income funds, hands back $14b
Once a giant of the Australian fixed income scene, the Mitsubishi UFJ-owned fund manager will close four units that manage $14 billion in a major restructure.
NSW government must ‘consult’ before changing WestConnex
Transurban has confirmed that the state cannot alter the structure of WestConnex without permission from the toll road group, a hearing revealed.
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Markets
Traders speculate RBA’s next move could be up
The Australian dollar jumped and bonds sold off after inflation beat forecasts, prompting traders to abandon almost every basis point of easing in this year’s cash rate profile.
Tesla buyers storm back, but not everyone is convinced
One early backer of Elon Musk’s electric vehicle manufacturer said it was hard to see it as a growth stock “when the world’s car industry is coming at you”.
How Australians are unlocking their crypto riches
Surging valuations mean many want ways to borrow cash against their digital windfalls, and one altcoin evangelist claims he has a solution.
Tesla jumps on pivot to cheaper cars after earnings flop
Shares in the struggling automaker are climbing in after hours trading after Elon Musk unveiled plans to bring forward the launch of more affordable models.
First Sentier shuts fixed income funds, hands back $14b
Once a giant of the Australian fixed income scene, the Mitsubishi UFJ-owned fund manager will close four units that manage $14 billion in a major restructure.
Opinion
Why the ECB will cut rates before the Fed
What matters is not what is happening right now, but what will happen in the months or even years ahead, as past policy works through the system.
Columnist
Elon Musk’s three key battles
The billionaire is dealing with falling earnings at Tesla, a fight over his multi-billion pay packet and a stoush with the Australian government.
Columnist
Musk sets test for social media without boundaries
The sudden row between Australia and Elon Musk is a test of sovereign writ against the biggest companies – but also where government control of media should begin and end.
Editorial
America’s ‘supercharged’ economy can’t last
One overlooked reason for US resilience is a tonne of stimulus still coursing through the economy.
Writer and investor
Chalmers’ puzzling budget strategy for year ahead
Ideally, the 2024 budget should be slightly contractionary or, at most, neutral to help the Reserve Bank deliver the difficult last mile of disinflation.
Editorial
Goyder will face the music at Woodside AGM
Even if the chairman now looks certain to survive a substantial protest vote and be re-elected, it all adds up to a firm rebuff of the company’s decarbonisation plan.
Columnist
Politics
‘Enemy of the people’: Musk lashes out at Lambie
X owner Elon Musk has continued his attacks on Australian politicians ahead of a Federal Court hearing on Wednesday about violent content on the platform.
No inflation room for budget stimulus, say economists
With inflation still too high, more than a dozen top analysts have warned Treasurer Jim Chalmers that next month’s federal budget must be contractionary or neutral.
The Melbourne shopping hotspot that became a ‘ghost town’
Businesses on Bridge Road in Richmond, which has a whopping 15.5 per cent vacancy rate, fear an insolvency snowball effect.
Australia’s richest firms get $331m in grants to reduce emissions
The government has doled out $331 million to firms including Rio Tinto, Wesfarmers, Swiss giant Glencore and Rich Lister Dick Honan’s Manildra for decarbonisation projects.
King opts out of call on NSW gas project over her past attacks
Resources Minister Madeleine King pulls out of making decisions around high-profile gas project off the coast of NSW that she once described as risky and a threat to jobs.
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World
Captain Cook’s first Australian souvenir returned to Indigenous owners
Cambridge University has surrendered a set of spears taken the momentous day when Sydney’s Indigenous people first set eyes on their eventual colonisers.
- Updated
- Electric vehicles
Tesla to accelerate cheaper EV rollout, revenue falls 9pc
Tesla’s shares rose 7 per cent after the announcement despite a reported fall in profit margins and sales.
Judge tells Trump lawyer he is ‘losing all credibility’
Donald Trump’s repeated attacks on witnesses in his criminal case have been labelled a deliberate violation of the judge’s gag order.
- Analysis
- South China Sea
Xi’s armada is winning the battle for energy in the South China Sea
A fleet of Chinese fishing boats, coast guard cutters and a giant vessel dubbed the “Monster” are making sure of it.
Tabloid publisher says he sought to shield Trump from sex scandals
The effort to suppress unflattering information was designed to illegally influence the election, prosecutors have alleged.
Property
Median house prices in Brisbane and Adelaide to hit $1m by December
House price growth momentum has slowed across the capital cities, but is still expected to hit new records this year according to Domain.
The Melbourne shopping hotspot that became a ‘ghost town’
Businesses on Bridge Road in Richmond, which has a whopping 15.5 per cent vacancy rate, fear an insolvency snowball effect.
Building materials supplier Lutum goes into administration
The move by directors to try and salvage the Boral spinoff shows casualties in Australia’s precarious home-building sector have spread well beyond builders.
Victor Island in the Whitsundays sold at 31pc discount to last sale
The 3.14ha island near Mackay was bought for $3.65m by Sydney-based Kingdom Developments, but sold for just $2.51m despite competition from 15 bidders.
Melbourne car park near Queen Vic Market tipped to sell for $120m
The large car park site at 380 Queen Street, which could support a multi-tower project overlooking Queen Victoria Market, is owned by Singaporean investors.
Wealth
The $10,000 and $30,000 rules for art that will make you money
With 83 per cent of young collectors buying art for financial reasons, here’s how to make sure you know what you’re doing.
How will $3m super tax work when my balance goes all over the place?
You won’t get a refund if you’ve paid the tax and your fund later loses money. But you can carry forward the loss to offset gains in later years.
The three reasons your portfolio needs emerging markets
A key attraction is the ability to invest across segments that often react differently to various macroeconomic environments.
Technology
‘Safe room for terrorists’: ASIO warns big tech on encryption
Federal spy and crime chiefs will demand access to social messaging systems that allow terrorists, violent extremists and child abusers to operate with impunity.
Scammers are taking over the world
A seedy layer beneath our regular lives is cluttered with bogus messages, spam callers and phishing attempts.
- Opinion
- AI
AI keeps going wrong. What if it can’t be fixed?
Pessimists warn it could wipe out humanity. Optimists hail a medical revolution. But sceptics argue that the technology is simply flawed.
Work & Careers
Energy focus as Ashurst, Allens, Freehills appoint new partners
Energy and environment lawyers have led promotions at top-tier firms, as the legal industry targets the energy transition as the next big source of billings.
Rita Ora is ‘crazy about supplements’ in the morning
TypeBea co-founders Rita Ora and Anna Lahey met through Lahey’s other business, ingestible beauty brand Vida Glow. They have now launched their own haircare line.
Life & Luxury
Why these are the two standout brands in women’s watches
The pressure is on for brands to be distinctive – and some players are going to extraordinary lengths.
Inside the Gold Dinner, where $20m is raised in one night
The rebooted charity gala proves that when it comes to bringing in serious money, it’s not about inviting who you know. It’s knowing who to invite.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Winemakers
Gang member turned investigative reporter launches his first wine
Twelve months after his first vintage, Mahmood Fazal is selling a shiraz inspired by a cult label in Spain, Persian poetry and the land of his ancestors.
Five surprising benefits of a firm and shapely bottom
New research shows muscle loss is not inevitable in midlife. Here’s how to perk up your posterior and enjoy the healthy rewards.
Escape into serenity with these day trips out of Kyoto
There are beautiful rivers, myriad shrines, a World Heritage-listed site, and much more within easy reach of the renowned Japanese city.
