Men in revolt against Gillard
Exclusive | Julia Gillard’s decision to restart the gender wars has imploded with male voters abandoning Labor, causing a crash in overall support for both the government and the Prime Minister’s personal standing.
Fed focus as markets swing on pullback chatter
Before the Bell | Fed chairman Ben Bernanke gets a fresh chance to set the record straight on when the central bank will pare its bond buying ■ Fed meets for two days ■ RBA minutes Tuesday ■ China business sentiment Friday.
Newcrest whistleblower says he would assist ASIC
The fund manager who blew the whistle on Newcrest Mining briefing analysts ahead of unveiling massive write-downs has offered to assist an investigation into the matter by ASIC.
Federal police passed the buck on BHP bribery claims
Documents released under freedom-of-information laws reveal the AFP initially failed to investigate criminal allegations levelled at mining giant BHP Billiton despite a referral from American authorities.
Macquarie trader sacked, ANZ reclaims bonuses after scandal
A rogue trader has been sacked by Macquarie Bank, and bonuses have been clawed back from two ANZ staff after an investigation into attempts to manipulate financial benchmarks.
Top retailers call for online imports tax
Woolworths, Coles, Bunnings and Harvey Norman are jointly lobbying the federal government to impose the goods and services tax on online purchases. They are also resisting calls to toughen up competition laws.
China invests in corporate Australia
Chinese banks are making inroads into Australia as they move to fill the void left by Europe’s retreating banks, which have turned away from the domestic market in the aftermath of the financial crisis.
CSG, joint-venture sales key to gas crisis: Grattan
Freeing up access to NSW coal seam gas resources and ending the joint marketing of gas by production partners are critical measures to avoid supply shortages in the eastern states, the Grattan Institute says.
Rio chief calls for greater tax transparency
Rio Tinto chief executive officer Sam Walsh has told a pre-G8 summit on trade and tax that there needs to be greater transparency from global businesses in their tax affairs.
Education researchers question testing regime’s merits
Leading researchers are questioning the wisdom of putting a testing regime at the heart of education policy nationally when its merits have yet to be proven and it could even be harmful.
Why Wendi Deng will not go quietly
Two days before shares in his new split empire begin trading on Wednesday, Rupert Murdoch is facing an existential threat to his control of the global media monolith he has built over 60 years.
UBS appointed to find Wanderers buyer
Exclusive | Football Federation Australia has accelerated its plan to sell the A-League football club Western Sydney Wanderers by appointing investment bank UBS to find a private buyer for the team.
Turnbull much preferred to lead Coalition
The latest AFR/Nielsen poll shows shadow communications minister Malcolm Turnbull’s popularity rating is almost double that of Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.
Newcrest woes fall short of a capital raise
Investment banks angling for a role on an emergency equity raising by embattled gold miner Newcrest Mining might be better off focusing their attention elsewhere.
More Bauer titles face the chop after review
The whispers have been circling for a while that Matt Stanton is under more heat from his Bauer Media masters than he had bargained for.
What your tax refund is really costing you
Around now a haze comes down over normally right-minded people’s eyes, blinding to them to logic in favour of getting the biggest tax refund possible.
Facebook and Microsoft reveal extent of US data requests
Internet giants Facebook and Microsoft say they received thousands of requests for data from US authorities last year.
Anthony Pratt confronts burglar: reports
An intruder has been charged with aggravated burglary after allegedly breaking in to the Pratt family mansion in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
Edward Snowden: Whistleblower or traitor
The Snowden leaks have triggered a debate on how to get the balance right between national security and privacy.
Film company deal aims at huge Chinese market
Australian filmmakers will ramp up co-productions with Chinese counterparts to tap into what could be the world’s largest box office within five years.
100-inch LG Laser TV a lazy $9000
LG showed off its laser-powered front-projection display at CES in January, and it looked great. Now it’s available to buy.
Rupert Murdoch files for divorce
News Corp chief executive Rupert Murdoch has filed for divorce from his wife Wendi, saying that the marriage had been irretrievably broken.
Wall Street watchdog bitten
Celebrated commentator Michael Lewis’ career of telling stories about Wall Street fortunes didn’t help him manage his own money.
Crime gangs target cars with more than 55,000 stolen
Total crime is down in Australia, according to new research, but motor vehicle theft is stronger than ever.
National
Men in revolt against Gillard
Exclusive | Julia Gillard’s decision to restart the gender wars has imploded with male voters abandoning Labor, causing a crash in overall support for both the government and the Prime Minister’s personal standing.
- Top retailers call for online imports tax
- Education researchers question testing regime’s merits
- Climate Commission warns coal will be left in ground
- CSG, joint-venture sales key to gas crisis: Grattan
- Ergon, Energex merger to cut power costs
- North West Rail Link will have $4.3 billion private sector contribution
- Proposed environment law changes upset BCA
- UBS appointed to find Wanderers buyer
Secret Toorak sale may have set record
A hush-hush home sale in Toorak has set a record for Melbourne’s most expensive property, selling for $25 million, industry sources say.
Opinion
World’s sharemarkets await Bernanke’s words
Ben Bernanke cannot have intended the roller-coaster ride that his May 22 testimony set off in global stock, currency and bond markets. So it makes sense that he seek to soothe the furrowed brows of investors this Wednesday.
Poll has lots of heat, no light for Gillard
Think of it as spontaneous political combustion. Today’s return to Canberra will only concentrate the fear and loathing roiling the Government. Tony Abbott and his colleagues may as well take a Caribbean holiday while the leadership mess so dominates caucus thinking and Labor’s public image.
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ASX raising may point to acquisitions
Of all the ways to describe the management style of Australian Securities Exchange chief Elmer Funke Kupper, “conservative” is not one that automatically springs to mind.
World
Liquidity risk for credit-boom China
Concerns grow that indebted companies and government entities in China will be unable to refinance their loans.
- North Korea wants US talks on nuclear-free peninsula
- New era of co-operation dawns between PNG and Indonesia
- Tax avoidance and Syria key issues for G8 meeting
- Turkey’s leader strikes back to clear protest park
- Changing of the guard but true ruler remains
- IMF urges repeal of US fiscal cuts
- Moderate cleric wins Iran presidential poll
- North Korea 'proposes talks' with US
Mild moderator for change in Tehran
The presidential election is a victory for reformers and the middle class but also serves the conservative goals of Iran’s supreme leader; restoring a patina of legitimacy to the theocratic state.
Business
Newcrest whistleblower says he would assist ASIC
The fund manager who blew the whistle on Newcrest Mining briefing analysts ahead of unveiling massive write-downs has offered to assist an investigation into the matter by ASIC.
- Rio chief calls for greater tax transparency
- Macquarie trader sacked, ANZ reclaims bonuses after scandal
- Federal police passed the buck on BHP bribery claims
- Brewer’s barrister acknowledges channel stuffing
- China invests in corporate Australia
- ANZ’s new global boss will be key: analysts
- Miclyn directors get ultimatum
- Computershare sends 50 jobs offshore
Good doctor Brian McNamee signs off at CSL
As he prepares to leave after 23 years, Brian McNamee reflects that a long-held focus on medicine and the patient has been key to CSL’s success.
Technology
Microsoft Office on iPhone for first time
Office Mobile for iPhone is available free through Apple’s app store but an Office 365 subscription is required to use it.Needed subscription can be pricier
- Google’s Project Loon explores balloon-powered Internet access
- PRISM program ‘not haphazard’: Holder
- Washington probes leaker’s motives
- Edward Snowden: Whistleblower or traitor
- PS4 v Xbox One: Three arguments for each console
- Apple official says he ‘didn’t raise prices’ on e-books
- Facebook on the rise but Google holds the market share
- Samsung opens R&D; facility in Nokia's backyard
- Symantec confirms it's cutting jobs
100-inch LG Laser TV a lazy $9000
LG showed off its laser-powered front-projection display at CES in January, and it looked great. Now it’s available to buy.
Markets
Market seeks Fed assurance on quantitative easing
Signs of market recovery in the US have raised concerns, but it seems the Federal Reserve will announce this week that it will continue with the stimulus program for some time.
- Fed boss tipped to soothe investor nerves
- World’s sharemarkets await Bernanke’s words
- Syria concerns push crude to four-month high
- How investors can make a falling Australian dollar work in their favour
- Toll Holdings outlook receive mixed reviews
- Elsmore not so tinny: it could be a wee gem
- Contrarian ideas in a volatile world
- BoE deputy Paul Tucker’s surprise departure stuns banking world
- Wall St stumbles on concern about Fed pullback
Calling the fouls from footy thugs to stocks
David Errington has copped more than his share of flak over some of the calls he’s made at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch. But he says his time as an AFL umpire helps him deal with it.
Personal finance
The Dinner Ladies serve it up, home-style
Sophie Gilliatt and Katherine Westwood have turned ‘what’s for dinner?’ into a business success story, delivering home-cooked meals to the doorsteps of a growing network of busy clients.
- Relax, don’t worry about China or US
- The good oil on the Mornington Peninsula
- Analysts point to deflation risk in global slowdown
- Strap yourself in for more volatility
- Awareness of MySuper products still lags
- Westpac buys back $US3.75bn of government-guaranteed debt
- Iron ore boom town burns homeowners
- Iron ore past its ‘golden age’: Barnett
- Future uncertain for listed property stock sector
SMSFs benefitting from equity funds downside
Figures published by research house Plan for Life last week make for depressing reading for Australian equity fund managers.
Lifestyle
Photographers’ Top End paradise
Acclaimed photojournalist Richard l’Anson leads a tour of enthusiasts into the enchanting Mary River Floodplains.
Adventures in luxury
The southern Philippines island, Siargao, fabled for its remote surf break, now has an exclusive resort to lure visitors
Melbourne chef puts regional fare on the menu
Nicky Riemer is on a mission to serve up the best in food and wine that producers in regional Victoria have to offer.
Anchored putting controversy affects US Open
Golf | Tiger Woods has been calling for a ban on anchored putting for years, and he looks likely to get his way.
Latest TV
Retailers’ GST campaign
Australia’s largest retailers are putting aside personal and competitive differences to lobby both sides of politics in a last-ditch bid to slash the tax-free threshold on imported goods, thwart calls to strengthen competition laws and boost labour productivity.
Smart Money: Enterprising Women – Dinner Ladies
The Dinner Ladies speak with Anne Fulwood for Smart Money | Enterprising Women. More AFR TV
Miclyn’s boardroom battle
Street Talk has the latest on Miclyn Express Offshore following the sacking of chairman Neil Hamilton.
Andy Irvine on rugby and business
British and Irish Lions manager Andy Irvine think it’s now harder for players to succeed in life after football. More AFR TV
