Costs key to Medibank’s private success
Tony Boyd | Medibank Private is the latest in a long list of privatisations that promises investors rising earnings and dividends from implementing more disciplined management techniques lacking under the dead hand of government. If management gets these right there will be consistent earnings growth, but they are not without their risks.
Transfield plays hard to get in $1b game
Transfield Services is playing hard to get with Ferrovial’s $1 billion takeovger bid. The $1.95-per-share price is a healthy 30 per cent premium to Friday’s closing price and Ferrovial wants full access to the books.
Gina Rinehart to keep Ten Network stake
Gina Rinehart, Australia’s richest person, will not relinquish her 10 per cent stake in struggling free-to-air broadcaster, Ten Network, despite planning to step down from the company’s board.
Markets Live: Transfield soars on takeover bid
BusinessDay | Shares extend their recovery jump, inspired by a rally in global market on Friday, while locally Transfield has rebuffed a takeover offer and the Medibank IPO prospectus has been published.
RBA finds an upside to ageing
The rapidly ageing population may not be the huge drag on economic growth and government coffers that many believe, according to a senior Reserve Bank of Australia official.
Google, Amazon eye Australia insurance market
Companies such as Google and Amazon may pose a threat to Australian insurers, as consumers increasingly trust technology behemoths to provide insurance and finance services.
Glencore stymied by Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton expansion push
Glencore’s massive iron ore deposits in Africa are understood to be among the mounting pile of project hopefuls across the globe being shut out of the market by the Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton’s expansion push.
Tenix sold to ASX-listed Downer EDI for $300m
Updated | Sydney’s wealthy Salteri family has sold contractor Tenix to Downer EDI for $300 million plus cash, according to an announcement sent to employees on Monday.
Rich listers join tech-age taxi race
Adele Ferguson | Some of the country’s most successful entrepreneurs have backed an equity raising of taxi booking and payments app goCatch in the race to “break apart” the $5.4 billion taxi industry.
Keep one step ahead of the ATO
A new app makes sorting work calls from personal calls at tax time a snap.
Vice News to add Australia bureau
Vice Media will open an office here to feed video and multimedia to its young audience.
Contagious viruses drive the market
Opinion | Stock markets are being driven by “thought viruses” that spread by contagion.
Deutsche, Goldman, Macquarie share $21m fees on Medibank float
--90x60.jpg)
Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Macquarie Capital will share an estimated $21 million in fees as part of Medibank Private’s $4.3 billion-plus float.
Zombie lectures must die
Opinion | Across Australia, an eerie silence is falling over university campus lecture halls.
Party over for Jackie Kelly
Rear Window | Former federal minister Jackie Kelly quit the Liberal Party last week. We doubt the party emitted any howls of grief.
Japan unveils first passenger jet
Japan has unveiled its first passenger jet after a delay of almost four years, with a helping hand from bullet-train specialists.
Avoid buyer’s regret after auction
It’s easy to get caught up in auctions, so plan to make your purchase one that will pay off.
Why women choose the burqa
Sahar Amer says for most Muslim women, covering the face is a matter of choice, which she wrote a book to explain.
Switch to PIN lessens tips
Gone are the days when you could sign away a healthy-sized tip, and don’t restaurants know it.
The new tools for insider traders
A swathe of insider trader cases has revealed how white collar criminals are using complex financial products to avoid detection by authorities.
5K iMacs, invisible iPads and some Apple let-downs
Apple launches updates to its iPad and iMac, but fails to launch a few things, too.
Cheers and jeers for Guy Debelle
Market watchers have been abuzz this week with their views on Reserve Bank assistant governor Guy Debelle’s warning of a “violent” adjustment.
Our top travel buddy: the work phone
If your work phone has accompanied you on your latest holiday, you aren’t alone.
National
Medibank Private sale could reap $5.5b
The federal government will reap up to $5.5 billion from the sale of Medibank Private when it lists on November 25, the health insurer’s prospectus has shown.
- Parliament dumps burqa ban
- RBA finds an upside to ageing
- Activists meeting loophole tightened
- Ai Group bid to end union ‘coercion’ on funds
- Gas price hike to hit manufacturing, households
- Disagreement over resources blacklist continues
- State governments urged to sell water assets
- Producers push back against supermarkets
- China needs two years to fix bubble, super fund warns
Union slush funds just the tip of the iceberg
Slush funds are the ill-reputed apparatuses of union influence that sparked the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption. But they are just the warm-up act.
Opinion
Liquidity shock delivers timely warning
A liquidity crunch hit global bond markets last week. A repeated dose threatens to dislocate the financial system.
Next headache for MCA: carbon weighting
The Minerals Council is right to be alarmed about the growth of the ‘divestment’ movement – and now there’s a new threat: carbon weighting.
Asia may ride out storm but it’s still no safe haven
William Pesek | The most-asked question isn’t where to make profits, but where to find a safe haven from the coming storm.
World
Prabowo throws support behind Joko
Indonesia’s new president, Joko Widodo, is set to slash fuel subsidies in his first days in office after winning some hope of more bipartisan support for economic reform policies.
- Modi aims for growth with major gas reform
- Japan unveils first passenger jet after four-year delay
- Protesters injured as HK police rain blows
- Abbott talks with PNG about Ebola preparedness
- Yellen risks backlash after remarks on inequality
- Green light for special forces imminent
- China plans to inject more money into local banks
Singapore leads way but teachers still get extra boost
Singapore is already near the top of world rankings of school performance but is nonetheless trying to further boost the quality of it teachers.
Business
Medibank Private sale could reap $5.5b
The federal government will reap up to $5.5 billion from the sale of Medibank Private when it lists on November 25, the health insurer’s prospectus has shown.
- Transfield Services gets takeover bid from Ferrovial
- Arrium iron ore shipments hit record
- Gina Rinehart to keep Ten Network stake
- Google, Amazon eye Australia insurance market
- Mint Wireless CEO resigns during trading halt
- Low iron prices here to stay, says BHP
- Tenix sold to ASX-listed Downer EDI for $300m
- Divided life insurers in crisis talks to repair industry
Transfield plays hard to get in $1b game
Transfield Services has not flatly rejected Ferrovial’s advances but it is playing extremely hard to get. The $1.95-per-share price is a healthy 30 per cent premium to Friday’s closing price.
Technology
Google, Amazon eye Australia insurance market
Companies such as Google and Amazon may pose a threat to Australian insurers, as consumers increasingly trust technology behemoths to provide insurance and finance services.
- Regulations stall start-ups
- Rock legend makes real music with Salesforce
- Seven, Presto rush for a deal as Netflix looms
- One IT system replaces 150 at La Trobe
- Netflix stock plunge shocks analysts
- Apple reveals slimmer iPad Air 2
- Google revenue rises 20pc, profit slips
- Australia’s favourite travel companion? The work phone
- Technology will hurt the banks, but it will not kill them
5K iMacs, invisible iPads and some Apple let-downs
Apple launches updates to its iPad and iMac, but fails to launch a few things, too.
Markets
Markets Live: Transfield soars on takeover bid
BusinessDay | Shares extend their recovery jump, inspired by a rally in global market on Friday, while locally Transfield has rebuffed a takeover offer and the Medibank IPO prospectus has been published.
- Investors still hunting Aussie debt
- Europe criticism ‘unfounded’, says economist
- Central bankers run out of answers as fear index rises
- Crown investors more worried about Macau than local casinos
- China needs two years to fix bubble, super fund warns
- Plowright’s perfect storm for Early Warning Network IPO
- Debelle’s candour a foil to silver tongues of central bankers
- Investment’s the key to bridging confidence gap
- Wall St rallies more than 1pc on strong earnings
The drumbeat warning of a market meltdown
Alan Mitchell | Public servants are not allowed to shout to get your attention, so they just keep repeating the message in the hope it will sink in.
Personal finance
More people are bequeathing before death
Australia may be on the cusp of the biggest intergenerational wealth transfer in history but a large part of people’s inheritance is likely to come from a “warm” hand rather than a cold one.
- Fashion connections: online start-ups rock the frock
- Get family on board with helping others
- Investors their own big risk in a wild market
- Wardrobe a bit wan? Dial a stylist
- Spot the difference: ethical v mainstream funds
- Be informed and aware if divorce is looming
- Prestige car makers know how to soften the blow
Overhaul in DIY super rules on loans
John Wasiliev | Every so often superannuation requires an overhaul to sort out complications that gathered over time.
Lifestyle
Business and pleasure don’t always mix
The perks of a work trip with colleagues might not prove to be so perky after all.
Class cookery schools in NSW’s central west
The food and wine footprint of NSW’s Central West is not confined to the high-profile nosh spots of Orange and Mudgee.
Leipzig steals Berlin’s cool
Once known as Germany’s ‘poverty capital’, the formerly drab, industrial city has been reborn into a cultural and artistic mecca.
E-bike experience makes living easy for rider
Mountains turn into molehills when riding an electric bike, like the Reptila 1000, made by the Hungarian bicycle maker, Gepida.
Latest TV
Apple's new iPad Air 2, iPad Mini 3 and iMac
Apple unveils a thinner, faster iPad Air and the iPad mini 3 amid declining tablet sales.
Super Saturday the ultimate test
Contrasting property analysis is sending mixed messages to the market as it prepares for a Super Saturday.
Global recovery concerns
Australian shares are expected to start the week on a positive note despite global economic recovery doubts.
Inside the CPI basket
The Kiwis have updated their CPI shopping list, but is Australia doing the same?
