Business

Michael Pascoe

Michael Pascoe is a BusinessDay contributing editor. He comments on companies, markets and the economy.

It's easy to be Treasurer when the money is rolling in.

The danger in the NSW budget

While there are many good things about this budget keeping the state's economy humming, there is one big danger.

charity

How to make money by giving it away

The 3 per cent of tax payers in the top tax bracket have an extra incentive to play philanthropist before June 30 – their donations will be worth 2 per cent more for them than on July 1.

Conspiracy theorists could be forgiven for wondering why only six weeks ago Ten's management seemed pretty comfortable ...

Murdoch fingerprints all over Ten's body

Ten Network Holdings isn't dead yet, but it's on life support with administrators appointed. Should an autopsy be conducted, Murdoch fingerprints and DNA will be found all over the body.

The Australian dollar remains stubbornly high.

The RBA theory that isn't working

As the gap between Australian and American rates narrows, other things being equal, the Aussie dollar should weaken against the greenback. The problem is that the theory isn't working.

What Malcolm Turnbull does next will affect how quickly we cut emissions and how often the system breaks down.

Man up, Malcolm, fill the budget's other big black hole

The obvious major missing ingredient in Scott Morrison's 'backflip' budget was the lack of actual tax reform - but there is another glaring black hole. Turnbull's leadership remains weak as long as he's unable to convince his backbenchers that it's OK to come out from under the lump of coal now, that we can move on from Abbott's whatever-it-takes.