AMP directors try to save their jobs
News that the AMP board failed to consider former CEO Andrew Mohl for the chairman role in 2016 has sparked outrage among investors ahead of next week's AGM.
NAB joins banks retreat from wealth
The royal commission could derail NAB's plan to sell MLC by forcing financial planners to operate separately from companies making products, the bank's chief executive admits.
Lawyer demand hits 'generational high'
Banking scandals have created a "generational" peak in demand for lawyers and "unprecedented" need is driving up pay and turnover.
AMP brings gender war into the open
Catherine Brenner, no matter the problems of AMP fermenting under a long line of male predecessors, has immediately become exhibit A in the gender wars.
Santos chairman signals Harbour price not right
Santos shareholders want to know why the company has opened its books to Harbour Energy when the future appears bright.
Voters back debt reduction over tax cuts
More voters overall believe the government should pay down debt rather than cut income tax – except those who face higher cost of living pressures.
Dollar drop big, but not big enough
The RBA might be 'delighted' about it, but the sharp drop in the Australian dollar in recent weeks is not enough to move the dial on economic growth and activity, experts say.
![NAB chief Andrew Thorburn: "We have to be careful that [bankers] don't get timid, and don't want to make a mistake so ...](http://web.archive.org./web/20180503182907/http://www.afr.com/content/dam/images/h/0/z/l/i/m/image.related.afrIndexLeadWide.140x79.h0zl7l.140mml.png/1525335961898.jpg)
CBA report a wake-up call for NAB
Andrew Thorburn said the prudential inquiry into NAB was immediately discussed at the NAB board and points to cultural improvements it also needs to make.
Pressure on Harbour Energy to lift buyout bid
Santos says predator Harbour Energy will have to pay more than its original indicative proposal because oil prices have risen.
Esprit to exit Australia after sales plunge
Fashion retailer Esprit, a go-to store for Australian teenagers in the '80s and '90s, has finally lost its spirit.
QBE gets 'first strike' over exec pay
QBE Insurance Group shareholders have handed the company a "first strike" on its 2017 remuneration report, incensed by hefty executive bonuses being doled out while the company languishes.
Super Retail defends its turf
Super Retail Group is tweaking its range and sharpening prices as competition from Decathlon starts to bite and Amazon ramps up.
Dixon funds announce buybacks
Dixon Advisory's $590 million US Residential Masters Property fund has announced a share buyback as the combined Evans Dixon Group finalises its listing plans.
Dollar drop big, but not big enough
The RBA might be delighted about it, but the sharp drop in the Australian dollar in recent weeks is not enough to move the dial on economic growth and activity, experts say.
The Fed is 'falling behind the curve'
Predicting three more rate hikes this year and up to four next year, Macquarie chief economist Ric Deverell says the Fed is moving too slowly.
ASX climbs to three-month high
Gains in the major miners helped the ASX climb for a fifth straigth session to its highest level since early February.
Opinion
When both sides break their own rules
Both sides are breaking the economic rules they set for themselves four years ago as the political imperative gets ahead of the economic recovery
AMP brings gender war into the open
Catherine Brenner, no matter the problems of AMP fermenting under a long line of male predecessors, has immediately become exhibit A in the gender wars.
Dollar drop big, but not big enough
The RBA might be delighted about it, but the sharp drop in the Australian dollar in recent weeks is not enough to move the dial on economic growth and activity, experts say.
CBA gets beaten up by the culture cops
Maybe the easiest thing to do about the banks would just be to nationalise them. At the moment they are semi-government public authorities anyway.
Top 47pc tax rate is high enough: Eslake
Saul Eslake, a firm supporter of Labor's promised crackdown on tax avoidance, is "just as implacably" opposed to an even higher top marginal tax rate for those earning more than $180,000.
Vision Super dumps chair over 'gross misconduct'
The union head of industry fund Vision Super has been thrown out over claims he engaged in "gross misbehaviour" when union secretary.
Labor to counter China in Pacific
Australia has failed to lead in the Pacific and allowed China to fill a strategic "gap" in our neighbourhood, Labor defence spokesman Richard Marles argues.
Banks 'in more trouble now' than the GFC
Former federal treasurer Peter Costello said banks were in "more trouble now than they were in the financial crisis" and they have killed the chance of a full company tax cut.
Look longer term for budget accuracy
Our obsession with four-year forward estimates gives governments every incentive to bury the true costs of policies - and both sides of politics are serial offenders.
New Zealand move hid cash trail to Azerbaijan president
Azerbaijan companies moved to New Zealand days after journalist's death and bank inquiry
Macron v Merkel: The Queen is dead, long live the King
As French President Emmanuel Macron is feted by presidents and prime ministers across the globe, Germans fear their long-time Chancellor is steering Germany to the sidelines of international politics.
Australia-France-India axis a bit of a stretch
Foreign policy experts have questioned French President Emmanuel Macron's drive for an Australia-France-India "strategic axis" for the Indo-Pacific.
US and China are finally having this rivalry out
Economics is not a war. No one has to lose in trade. But it depends on everybody playing by the same rules.
May in crisis as Cabinet Brexiteers outgun her
The UK Prime Minister is facing a crisis after pro-Brexit ministers paired up with Conservative hardliners to demand a clean break from the EU's customs system.
Personal Finance
House prices 'belted' as banks hit brakes
The $3 million to $5 million slice of the market is being hardest hit as buyers without deposits of between 25 to 35 per cent are being squeezed out of the market by the tougher lending conditions, agents claim.
'You can not live on $39 a day': BCA
BCA boss Jennifer Westacott has rejected claims a Liberal MP could live on $40 a day, restating calls to lift unemployment benefits to help vulnerable people get jobs.
Mortgage brokers not viable without commissions
A wholesale change to the commission pay structure for mortgage brokers risked handing power back to the big banks, according to the chief executive of AFG, one of the nation's largest mortgage broking groups.
Allens partners contracted to retire
Allens has confirmed that its expectation that partners retire at 65 is written into its partnership agreement.
Clayton Utz part of outsourced legal trial
The law firm at the centre of a controversy surrounding AMP's moves to change an independent report is part of a new federal government trial to outsource legislative drafting.
Gender diversity has a problem
The push to put more women on boards needs to go beyond the appointment of mainly "Caucasian women over 50", business leaders say.
Row over overseas directors on bank boards
Peter Costello has taken a swipe at the "complacent" boards of the big four banks and said the appointment of overseas directors has reduced oversight.
Lifestyle
Recipe for a Rolls-Royce: majesty and manners in one
There is more to designing a Rolls-Royce than making it look imposing. It's just as important to have a polite tail, says design director Giles Taylor.
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David Rowe cartoon
