Goldman tips stocks over bonds
Portfolio managers are increasingly factoring in the likelihood of a US rate increase and tipping equities to outperform bonds for another three years before tapering off, Goldman Sachs says. Both the futures market and Goldman’s economics team expect the Federal Reserve to first raise rates in about 12 months’ time.
Banks kneecap savings rates
Christopher Joye | Retail deposit rates offered by the five biggest banks fell in July and have declined markedly since the last time the RBA cut its official cash rate back in August 2013.
Hockey hits business for ‘weak’ help
Treasurer Joe Hockey has hit out at a lack of bipartisan support for tough economic reform, weak business advocacy for change, and the media for attacks against him personally.
US stocks flat after choppy session
Before the Bell | Shares on Wall Street closed little changed, after a choppy session, after two potential multibillion-dollar mergers collapsed ■ $A at US93.55¢ ■ SPI futures down 11 pts ■ Rio results ahead.
Major contractors line up for Adani mine
Three of Australia’s leading contractors are vying for the rights to operate Adani’s proposed $16 billion Carmichael coal mine in Queensland, with the group expected to make a decision by the end of August.
Italian, German economies stumble
The Italian economy shrank in the second quarter, taking economists by surprise and provoking concern that violence in Ukraine could be pushing the eurozone back into recession.
High vacancies hit office floors in major centres
Thousands of office floors are lying vacant across the country yet Michael Cook, executive at office landlord group, Investa, says his team have achieved some of the best leasing success ever in the last year.
Rhone Capital to take Treasury Wine’s US business
Even though he’s among the richest 400 people in the US these days, Rhone Capital principal Robert Agostinelli still has an eye for how to structure the finer details of a deal.
Rupert rejects return to Time Warner
Updated | Rupert Murdoch says his 21st Century Fox, which has reported a 17 per cent quarterly revenue boost, has made a “resolute decision” to walk away from its $US80 billion bid for rival Time Warner.
16 contenders for business book of year
Two of 2014’s most controversial books are included in the longlist for the Financial Times’s 10th business book of the year.
Why Australian fundies can’t crack Asia
Jennifer Hewett | There’s persistent faith in the potential to export financial services to Asia, but too few results.
Axed Lynas staff share Curtis’s pain
Rear Window | It was not Lynas chairman Nick Curtis’s finest hour.
Cheap debt versus buoyant equity for Orica
Orica’s $1 billion chemicals spin-off shapes up as a battle between cheap offshore debt and frothy equity markets.
Del Piero signs close-knit deal with Woolmark
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Italian football superstar Alessandro Del Piero has signed a two-year deal to become Woolmark’s global ambassador.
China drops Apple from procurement list
China’s government excluded 10 Apple products from the list of products that can be bought with public money.
Tony Abbott and the black hole moment
Alan Mitchell | The Senate may have given Tony Abbott an excuse to reconsider reforms he had previously opposed.
Groupon shares sink after loss widens
Groupon investors sent the stock down almost 18 per cent in after-hours trading after the company’s losses widened in the second quarter.
Big-screen iPhones rumoured
Apple is preparing to introduce bigger-screen iPhones at an event on September 9, a person familiar with the plans has said.
I think, therefore I exercise
Geoff Winestock | As we get older it’s easy to forget exercise is for smart people too.
Stokes has done his dash
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Rear Window | Add it to the list of things we know about media and digging billionaire Kerry Stokes.
Scarce cemetery space creates prices to die for
Even in death, you can’t escape the property bubble. The living compete with the deceased, to drive up real estate costs well into the afterlife
Cash no longer king, report finds
Cash use will fall to just over 40 per cent of all payments by 2018, and cheques will disappear.
National
Leak shows widespread visa rorting
Rampant visa fraud and migration crime involving plane arrivals into Australia is going unchecked while the government focuses on stopping boats, according to secret government files.
- Treasurer Joe Hockey hits business for ‘weak’ help in budget fight
- Data retention policy ‘chaotic, confusing’: iiNet
- New terrorism laws ‘not justified’
- Gender still an issue in workplaces
- AGL granted NSW CSG fracking licence
- Billionaire Anthony Pratt: focus on China food exports
- ICAC fells more Lib MPs
- Dutton confident of convincing Palmer on GP fee
How to spot a narcissist in one easy step
To find a narcissist, just ask them all to stand up. A new study says the diagnostic test for narcissism can often be skipped in favour of a single, blunt question.
Opinion
What to expect when you’re investing
Brokers will often hear the phrase “how much money am I going to make out of that?” bandied about with respect to buying shares or another investment.
Free speech a casualty of the culture wars
Editorial | While an open society needs firm protection from those who would exploit our freedoms to harm us, it also needs a vigorous right of free speech.
The war of ideas has already begun
David Brooks | James Mwangi grew up on the slopes of the Aberdare Mountains in Kenya. Later moving into finance, he was named Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year.
World
Italian, German economies stumble
The Italian economy shrank in the second quarter, taking economists by surprise and provoking concern that violence in Ukraine could be pushing the eurozone back into recession.
- Twenty-First Century Fox reports revenue surge
- Russian seen positioning for ‘humanitarian’ invasion
- Bank of America gets Fed nod to raise dividend
- Fed rejects Wall Street bankruptcy plans
- Time Warner posts higher-than-expected profit
- Dutch premier call a halt to MH17 search
- Walgreen buys all of Boots for $16 billion
- Muslim UK minister quits to protest Gaza policies
The ideological battle rages on
Francis Fukuyama’s famous pronouncement notwithstanding, the battle between planned economies and free markets is still being fought.
Business
Major contractors line up for Adani mine
Three of Australia’s leading contractors are vying for the rights to operate Adani’s proposed $16 billion Carmichael coal mine in Queensland, with the group expected to make a decision by the end of August.
- Twenty-First Century Fox reports revenue surge
- Newmont chief to witness Australian productivity gains
- Frasers gets Australand takeover boost
- Sydney Airport chief financial officer resigns
- Orica to spin off chemicals division
- Liquor retailers wince at yet another Penfolds ownership change
- Kalgoorlie needs money to explore or will run out of mines
- Big banks get a ‘quantum leap’ from lower capital levels
- Regulators show no mercy to battered life insurers
Foxing, or not
Unruffled by Time Warner’s initial rejection, Rupert Murdoch is settled in for the long play as the mating dance begins.
Technology
Apple, Samsung call off court case
Global technology giants Apple and Samsung have called off all of their long-running Australian court disputes after a deal was struck between the companies.
- China said to drop Apple from procurement list
- Groupon shares sink after loss widens
- Yatango aims to hand buying power back to consumer
- Grays Online lists after reverse takeover
- A tough task fixing the NBN debacle
- Russian gang nets 1b web passwords
- Government backs forced retention of phone, internet data
- Security firms downplay Beijing effort to exclude them
Big-screen iPhones rumoured for September 9 launch
Apple is preparing to introduce bigger-screen iPhones at an event on September 9, a person familiar with the plans has said.
Markets
US stocks flat after choppy session
Before the Bell | Shares on Wall Street closed little changed, after a choppy session, after two potential multibillion-dollar mergers collapsed ■ $A at US93.55¢ ■ SPI futures down 11 pts ■ Rio results ahead.
- Shares seen trading lower on global concern
- $A higher as gold gets a safe-haven boost
- Gold jumps as nerves fray over outlook for Ukraine
- Wall St ends little changed on failed mergers
- China seen slowing effort to free yuan
- Fed's Lockhart sees no need to rush to higher rates
- US Treasury looks to boost daily cash holdings
- Copper falls to five-week low as greenback rises
- Italian, German economies stumble
Fortescue lowers repayment targets
A sustained lull in the iron ore price may alter the pace at which Fortescue Metals Group pays down its debt. The iron ore miner is now targeting a repayment up to $2.5 billion over the next 18 months.
Personal finance
Negotiating the fast-money minefield
Be very, very wary of any fast money investment scheme. It’s the old saying: “If it looks too good to be true, then it probably is.” There are no easy ways to financial security.
- Best policy to keep your children covered
- How we are becoming a free agent nation
- Fund managers spill the beans on returns
- Downsizing made simple: the value of a buyers’ agent
- Beat the IPO market at its own game
- Low market volatility no reason to rest on your laurels
- Do the sums on the true cost of private schools
- What it feels like to have a private plane
How high fees are eroding your savings
Australians may toast the sterling results their super funds delivered last financial year, but fund members would be well advised to closely look at how much they shell out to funds.
Lifestyle
Take your pick at the Superyacht Show
The big, beautiful, speedy craft at this year’s Sydney Superyacht Show represent the cutting edge of boat design.
Cabernet sauvignon from California’s mountains
Jackson Family Wines are behind some great names in the US and beyond, including McLaren Vale’s Yangarra.
Learn a language the fun way
These apps, books and movies make learning a new language easier than ever before.
Ferrari gives new meaning to Speciale
It’s brave to call a car special, or smart, or superb. But the Ferrari 458 Speciale is pretty damn speciale.
Latest TV
Murdoch withdraws bid for Time Warner
Investors have been kept busy with news of Rupert Murdoch’s decision to drop his bid for Time Warner.
Home brand vs name brand
The latest research paper debunks the myth that name brands are better than generic brands.
Why hasn't the RBA changed tune?
The RBA has left interest rates on hold, and that looks unlikely to change - to the CBA's surprise.
Telcos may be forced to store user data
The government wants to store metadata, which would be used for investigative purposes.
