Coal crackdown has Chinese hunting gas
Beijing’s move to close coal-fired power plants with high levels of pollution and to restrict coal use has led to an increased Chinese appetite for Australian gas assets, according to Helman Sitohang, head of the investment bank for Credit Suisse Asia Pacific. There is ‘a definite interest in clean energy, such as gas assets’, he says.
ING makes business lending push
ING Direct will expand its push into business lending and launch a new range of consumer finance products, as it marks 15 years of operating in Australia.
Markets Live: Bear prowls as ASX faces correction
BusinessDay | Global growth scares dominate as local shares plunge in early trade with losses across the board, after last week ended with steep falls on Wall Street.
ANU will revise decision if flaws become evident
The Australian National University would reconsider its strategy to divest interests in fossil fuel companies should new information come to hand or flaws become evident in the methodology.
Experts focus on bright side of market selloff
As the global sharemarket selloff intensifies, investment strategists and managers of multi-asset portfolios remain committed to equities and say they are more likely to see plunging share prices as a buying opportunity.
CCA’s $1b Indonesian stand-off
Adele Ferguson | As the board of Coca-Cola Amatil jet into midtown Atlanta, Georgia, for a three day visit with its major shareholder, Indonesia has been flagged as a key topic of discussion – and heated debate.
Real estate ‘biggest risk’ to China’s economy
China’s top central bank economist, Ma Jun, warned the sluggish real estate sector was the biggest risk to the country’s economy as a marked slowing in property investment hits the iron ore-dependent steel sector.
Share scheme, visas for rich tweaks on the way
Employee shares schemes will be expanded, foreign investors will have to better target their money in return for a visa, and millions will be spent linking business with education and research, under a suite of proposals.
Bankers’ bonuses unlikely to boom
Investment banking executives and recruiters say bonuses for 2014 are shaping up to be in line with or slightly better than last year, dampening expectations of a return to large payments.
Bill Gross strikes a gloomy note
Former Pimco chief Bill Gross warns “returns are going to be lower than in the old days”.
Yellen, Carney face off in ‘war game’
Janet Yellen and Mark Carney will bunker down to engage in a financial ‘war game’.
Last month’s $A seller predicts its rise
The Aussie will be back to US90¢ in 2016 says the man who correctly predicted this year’s rise.
ACCC scrutiny of Queensland power privatisation
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Utilities deal markers have been put on notice: the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is highly interested in Queensland’s power privatisation plan.
Flood of auctions cools property market
The lowest weekend auction clearance rates in Sydney and Melbourne for two months could be early signs the bull market is running out of puff.
Is there such a thing as too much Grange?
Grange fatigue is a rare affliction among affluent wine buyers. But there are some who suffer from it.
Milliners’ cash in on spring racing
As spring racing begins at Flemington and Randwick it’s not just punters counting profits.
Shining light on ANU’s blacklisting
From the editor-in-chief | AFR was on top of this week’s key stories, from ANU’s divestments to Glencore’s tilt at Rio. And there’s more this weekend.
1-Page aims to kill off CVs
A former FBI officer’s tech start-up aims to oust CVs with system that challenges job seekers.
Qantas to charge extra for children flying alone
Qantas will introduce a new fee for unaccompanied children flying on the airline as a result of a rising number flying alone and the increasing costs of supervision.
Icahn puts $US1.2tn valuation on Apple
The world’s biggest company isn’t big enough for Carl Icahn. Here are five reason why he thinks Apple’s stock is worth a lot more.
Air rage: what you can do about it
Trends | Experts say planes are antisocial spaces where explosive emotions reign, but you can help prevent it.
Awkward times await Abbott in Canberra
Rear Window | Blair Comley will attend Friday’s COAG meeting – rubbing shoulders with Tony Abbott and Denis Napthine. That won’t be awkward!
More and more men work part-time
Women are not the only ones who are feeling the pleasures and pains of shorter working hours and the corresponding smaller pay checks.
National
Share scheme, visas for rich tweaks on the way
Employee shares schemes will be expanded, foreign investors will have to better target their money in return for a visa, and millions will be spent linking business with education and research, under a suite of proposals.
- ANU will revise decision if flaws become evident
- Some CBA clients awaiting basic information
- Wall Street hails Hockey growth agenda
- Detractors invited to talks
- KPMG’s Cbus privacy investigation only check email
- Pyne welcomes curriculum review for edge over Asia
- ACCC chair warns Queensland to split power generators
- Researchers want public funds any way
- Nationals push to tax online bookies
Online, in-play betting gets industry push
Moves to change online betting laws have left opponents aghast, while proponents say it’s already happening and they want in on some of the $26 billion in digitally placed bets each year.
Opinion
Federal Reserve concerned about rising $US
Are we on the brink of a fresh round of currency wars? That’s the latest worry for investors.
The thankless lot of a resources company
Tim Dodd | What does an oil and gas company have to do to get a little respect from a vice-chancellor?
Cobra regulation restricting conventional gas supply
Nev Power | The British governor of Delhi had a problem with cobras so he introduced a bounty scheme, so the story goes.
World
Officials admit a ‘defeat’ by Ebola in Sierra Leone
Acknowledging a major “defeat” in the fight against Ebola, international health officials battling the epidemic in Sierra Leone recognised that they are overwhelmed and have little chance of getting enough treatment beds in place to meet the surging need, so have approved plans on Friday to help families tend to patients at home.
- Real estate poses biggest risk to China’s economy, says PBOC key man
- Protest leaders return to streets after talks are scrapped
- Kurds battle IS as UN fears massacre
- India-Pakistan Nobel Prize simply a symbol
- Abbott to confront Putin over MH17
- Hockey pushes for global investment in infrastructure
- Balloons put end to North-South Korean peace talks
- Terror threat far greater, London’s mayor suggests
In Paris, Disney seeks to lift Mickey's malaise
More than 8,000 people signed a petition last year on Change.org urging Walt Disney Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger to "Save Disneyland Paris."
Business
CCA’s $1b Indonesian stand-off
Adele Ferguson | As the board of Coca-Cola Amatil jet into midtown Atlanta, Georgia, for a three day visit with its major shareholder, Indonesia has been flagged as a key topic of discussion – and heated debate.
- Stockland pays $59.25m for shopping centre stake
- ING makes business lending push
- Bankers’ bonuses unlikely to boom
- Glencore-Rio Tinto deal won’t change iron’s race to bottom, says Alberto Calderon
- Embarrassing haircut to come after low uptake of Arrium book-build
- No free pass for China’s own on coal tariffs
- New NBN Co services to bridge fund gap
- Costco back in the black prediction for 2015
- Lobbyist John Brogden hopes for fewer fights at AICD
Technology
Microsoft chief ‘completely wrong’ in equal female pay comments
Microsoft chief Satya Nadella has retreated from comments he made at a women in technology conference that had suggested women should not ask for equal pay, saying he answered the question “completely wrong.”
- Symantec to split itself in two
- Retaining metadata will cost ‘hundreds of millions’
- Xero and MYOB show the value of unexpected ideas
- Amazon set to open store in midtown Manhattan
- Icahn puts $US1.2tn valuation on Apple
- Wotif shareholders approve Expedia takeover deal
- Xero hires ex-CBA marketing chief Andy Lark
The birth of the worldwide web
The information technology revolution is the subject of a new book, The Innovators: How a Group of Inventors, Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution. This extract looks at how a Victorian almanac inspired the worldwide web.
Markets
Markets Live: Bear prowls as ASX faces correction
BusinessDay | Global growth scares dominate as local shares plunge in early trade with losses across the board, after last week ended with steep falls on Wall Street.
- Glencore, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton defy coal supply glut
- Analysts expect shares may fall further yet
- World economies warn of global risks, call for action
- Last month’s $A seller predicts its rise again
- Experts focus on bright side of market selloff
- Commodities speak the truth to nervous equities investors
- Slippery times for oil as global demand drops off
- Investors split over QBE’s future ahead of CEO’s address
- Be informed and aware if divorce is looming
Are asset managers too big to fail?
John Kehoe | As global stocks tumble and volatility returns to financial markets, it may be timely to ask: do asset managers who hold your investments pose the same serious financial systemic risk as big banks?
Personal finance
Be informed and aware if divorce is looming
The breakdown of a marriage or de facto relationship can bring about some strange and irrational behaviour but living with the enemy, so to speak, does not have to be part of it.
- Why Freehills lawyer Stephanie Pursley took 20 years to work out her New Zealand escape plan
- Designs on building a dream home
- Prestige car makers know how to soften the blow
- Private equity plays aren’t fun for investors
- Scramble for housing gets riskier
- Tech starlets line up for $77 million Bailador fund
- Gold price slump hits ASX miners
The nitty-gritty of small APRA funds
Small APRA funds may not be very popular, with only 2600 in the country.
Lifestyle
Karen Walker’s golden decade of quirky shades
Frustrated by ’timid’ eyewear, the New Zealand designer created her own unique pieces.
World’s toughest tee-offs
We take you to the 10 most extreme golf courses you can play, for ultimate bragging rights.
Nipped and tucked: the all-new Audi TT
“It has to be a two-plus-two with the engine in the front, or it is not a TT,” says Audi’s Markus Siewert.
Hottest new restaurants in London
Discover new dining destinations where the food is precise, gorgeous and wildly varied.
Latest TV
Rio-Glencore doubts
Alberto Calderon, the man who led the merger team for BHP Billiton's failed multibillion-dollar deal with Rio Tinto, has raised doubts about a Glencore-Rio merger.
Surgery's surge
Health is big business in Australia and private hospitals are now taking a bigger slice of the action by capitalising on a lucrative growth area - day surgery.
Rear Window
Joe Aston's take on this week's most talked-about interview - plus the glut of second-rate political biographies on the market.
Fundies start buying
Leading Australian fund managers predict the sharemarket is in the the throes of a long-term correction, but remain wary of missing buying opportunities.
