Job ads drop for fifth month
A leading indicator of the labour market has weakened for a fifth straight month, adding weight to concerns the unemployment rate may surge in coming quarters.
Live | Rudd attacks Murdoch over tweet, coverage
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has hit back at a critical tweet from media mogul Rupert Murdoch and responded to critical coverage in his Australian newspapers, as the second day of the federal election campaign rolls on.
Leighton settles $899m Perth airport deal details
Contracting giant Leighton Holdings has reached agreement with Main Roads WA on the price, scope and construction of the $1 billion Gateway Perth Airport and Freight Access Project.
Cochlear’s US sales fall 4pc ahead of new product
Updated | Bionic ear marker Cochlear says it has a strong product pipeline that will drive growth in the new fiscal year, despite sales in the key region of the United States falling 4 per cent over fiscal 2013.
Downer EDI profit up despite tough ride
Updated | Better project execution and cost control helped Downer EDI to a 10 per cent rise in full-year underlying net profit, despite a difficult operating environment for contractors.
ASX down ahead of RBA rates decision
Updated | The ASX fell ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision on the cash rate at 2.30pm AEST Tuesday after overseas markets were tepid.
Brokers downcast on loss-making Virgin
Brokers have slashed their 2013-14 financial year earnings forecasts for Virgin Australia by around two-thirds after the airline on Monday revealed it expected to report a loss for the 2012-13 financial year.
Packer, Bassat, Libermans pour millions into start-up fund
James Packer and Seek’s Paul Bassat have joined some of Australia’s most successful entrepreneurs and investors in pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into a fund aimed local and international start-ups.
Orica appoints Calderon, Tilbrook to board
Explosives manufacturer Orica has announced the appointment of Alberto Calderon and Gene Tilbrook as non-executive directors, effective August 14.
Time to unwind QE: senior Fed official
Richard Fisher, the head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, has said the central bank’s massive bond purchases has created a “monetary Gordian knot” which it now needed to unwind.
Suspect Whiteley painting case settled on eve of trial
Sydney investment banker and newly appointed Sydney Swans chairman Andrew Pridham has settled his legal case against a Melbourne art dealer from whom he paid $2.5 million for a Brett Whiteley painting which he alleged was fake.
Taper talk a negative for bond funds
Talk of the US Federal Reserve scaling back its bond-buying weighed on bond fund returns leading up to July, with long-dated global and Australian-government debt suffering the greatest losses in the past three months.
Emerging markets offer rare opportunity for risk-takers
Everything that could go wrong for emerging market equities has done so in recent months. But for those with an appetite for risk and a longer-term outlook, there’s a rare investment opportunity.
IRESS in $206m rights issues to buy Avelo
IRESS is raising $206 million to fund the acquisition of UK business Avelo, in a rights issue through Goldman Sachs.
World’s first test tube burger unveiled
Scientists have unveiled the world’s first lab-grown beef burger, serving it up to volunteers in London in what they hope is the start of a food revolution.
Amazon.com founder buys the Washington Post
The Washington Post Co said it has sold its flagship newspaper to Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, for $US250 million.
Tourism trade targets Chinese investors
Austrade has set up a team in China to seek out prospective investors in hotels, resorts, tourist service companies and water parks.
YouTube creator looks to next frontier
Chad Hurley sold YouTube to Google for $US1.65bn. It’s now worth over $US15.6bn and he predicts it will outlast Facebook.
Stosur wins US title, rises to world No. 11
A mid-season time-out has paid quick dividends for Samantha Stosur with a confidence-boosting first title since her 2011 US Open triumph.
Computers learn to wipe human memories
Scientists haven’t yet found a way to mend a broken heart, but they’re edging closer to manipulating memory and downloading instructions from a computer right into a brain.
Allan puts punch back into News
Col Allan’s return to News Corp comes at a critical juncture for Rupert Murdoch’s media empire in Australia.
Coursera billed as the Amazon of education
Investors in Coursera, the world’s largest massive open online course provider are confident the company will find a sustainable business model.
Gehry university building will be landmark
Designed by “starchitect” Frank Gehry, the University of Technology Sydney’s new business school is unique.
Brumbies a blueprint for the Wallabies
The success of the Brumbies rugby team over the past two years has been driven through structure and excellence.
National
Job ads drop for fifth month
A leading indicator of the labour market has weakened for a fifth straight month, adding weight to concerns the unemployment rate may surge in coming quarters.
- Live | Rudd attacks Murdoch over tweet, coverage
- Hockey ‘irresponsible’ to instruct the RBA, says Rudd
- Greens control of Senate under threat
- GrainCorp deal looms as election issue
- Woodside to consider James Price Point supply base
- LNP tobacco policies need review: Glasson
- Business expects December quarter to be better
- McKibbin says hold the cuts and reform the budget
- Charlton the frontrunner in troubled seat
Opinion
Lifeboat ethics and the benefit of quiet reflection
The Cranlana programme in Melbourne, founded by Kenneth Myer in 1993, exposes business leaders and other attendees to the moral and ethical dilemmas of our time in an environment that enables quiet reflection.
Abbott win could have CEOs finding excuses
Chief executives have a few excuses up their sleeves if their numbers aren’t up to scratch as the reporting season unfolds.
Same old government, same old tax ideas
The August Economic Statement continues the pattern of sub-optimal knee-jerk tax reform that has marked this government since the failed resource super profits tax of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s first term.
World
Fonterra scare builds, Nutricia expands recall
Infant formula maker Nutricia says it is now recalling all of its possibly botulism-affected Karicare formula in New Zealand after getting more information from Fonterra.
- HSBC profit rises, revenue slips
- Amazon.com founder buys the Washington Post
- BP accused of manipulating US gas market
- Stanford executives are liable for fraud: US judge
- EU approves American, US Airways’ merger
- IMF urges Japan to stick to two-stage sales tax hike
- Christie's hired to appraise Detroit art collection
- US military helicopter crashes in Japan's Okinawa
- Euro zone business expands for first time in 18 months
Bangkok braced for fresh political street protests
Thailand’s capital is braced for unrest in the week ahead, with street protests expected over moves in parliament that could eventually lead to a pardon for ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Business
Leighton settles $899m Perth airport deal details
Contracting giant Leighton Holdings has reached agreement with Main Roads WA on the price, scope and construction of the $1 billion Gateway Perth Airport and Freight Access Project.
- Cochlear’s US sales fall 4pc ahead of new product
- IRESS buys UK competitor for £210m
- Brokers downcast on loss-making Virgin
- Downer EDI profit up despite tough ride
- Orica appoints Calderon, Tilbrook to board
- Service Stream exits trading halt to announce material NBN losses
- Crown execs inspect Colombo casino site
- Fonterra scare builds, Nutricia expands recall
Downer in good shape despite downturn
Grant Fenn has transformed Downer EDI from a market dog to one of the few companies exposed to the mining sector that has managed to meet its earnings guidance this year.
Technology
Qld should have ended IBM contract: inquiry
Queensland taxpayers will never recover the huge amount of money wasted on the health payroll system, and an inquiry into the debacle has added $5 million to the bill.
- Service Stream exits trading halt to announce material NBN losses
- Packer, Bassat, Libermans pour millions into start-up fund
- Sony rejects US hedge fund proposal to split
- Samsung shares dive after Apple veto
- Amazon.com founder buys the Washington Post
- NBN contractor quits rollout project
- Tasmania not a priority in Telstra’s repair plan
- Facebook set to launch Aussie election tracker
- Rudd’s Team Obama choice a slap in the face
Toshiba Portege Z10t needs some breaking in
Here at Digital Life Labs we don’t particularly enjoy trying to break things, but the Toshiba Portege Z10t convertible ultrabook needs to be broken just a little, so it can work properly.
Markets
ASX down ahead of RBA rates decision
Updated | The ASX fell ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision on the cash rate at 2.30pm AEST Tuesday after overseas markets were tepid.
- Mixed bag: PMIs and US credit rating anniversary
- $A slightly higher ahead of RBA decision
- Job ads drop for fifth month
- Emerging markets offer rare opportunity for risk-takers
- Dow, S&P; 500 slip from record highs
- Brokers downcast on loss-making Virgin
- Insider trading: when does information become ‘confidential’?
- Business expects December quarter to be better
- US bonds fall on strong service data, new supply
Majority govt would boost confidence
Professional investors say a change in government would decrease regulatory risk and boost business confidence that has waned in the past six years leading to better corporate profits and higher share prices.
Personal finance
Low interest rates bring back house and land buyers
The green shoots of a national house and land market recovery are showing, with national sales at their highest level since 2008- and up 16 per cent in the June quarter.
- Macquarie, ING lead attack on home loan dominance
- ASIC inquiry into CBA dealings with Bankwest clients
- ASIC admits blunders in CBA planners case
- Climate of change for asset investment
- UniSuper changes may hit retirement payouts
- Jobs figures show lacklustre nature of US recovery
- Wilson chairman slams Rudd’s management
- Strong culture at Tweedy, Browne
- The challenges of relying on dividend income
Proposed financial stability fund too small: analysis
The financial stability fund proposed by the Rudd government to bail out depositors in the event of a future bank failure will be too small to fully cover even small institutions like the Bank of Queensland.
Lifestyle
Telluride weather – and skiing – is heaven sent
Luxury accommodation, fine dining, great shopping, excellent snowboarding and a wine bar at 12,000 feet. Be careful, you’ll get stuck in the spot that Butch Cassidy escaped.
Fiat 500 and Gucci make a fashion statement
Gucci has partnered with Fiat on the stylishly branded Fiat 500, but if you want one, be quick, as there are only 101 available to Australian buyers.
Wristwatches go all out for all white
The latest watch look to be winning over our forearms is white – a trend that owes a lot to a material, namely ceramics, and a brand, namely Chanel.
Hotel rooms provide a blank canvas for escape
From Mexico to Mykonos, hotels are embracing the brilliance of all-white interiors to stunning effect – they have become a retreat from an overstimulated world.
Latest TV
Review | Toshiba Portege Z10T
Toshiba’s new convertible laptop sports a mobile data SIM, but its inflexible screen angle may be a disaster for the tall. More AFR TV
Fortescue TPI Sale
The higher iron ore price has taken the pressure off Fortescue Metals’ need to sell its rail and port business TPI. More AFR TV
Chanticleer | Virgin downgrade
Tony Boyd says yet another profit downgrade shows Virgin Australia chief John Borghetti has overextended himself. More AFR TV
Barnett on election and NDIS
West Australian Premier Colin Barnett says an agreement with the Commonwealth over the NDIS has been reached and an election date will end years of uncertainty. More AFR TV
