Who will hold power in a Shorten government?
With the polls suggesting Labor is on the cusp of an election victory, these key players could soon be holding the levers of power.
- Exclusive
- Federal election
Bowen tells Labor colleagues: no more big spending
Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen has put his colleagues on notice by warning them not to ask for more big spending measures should Labor win the election.
How to escape the franking credit trap
Whether Labor's franking plan goes ahead is a moot point but advisers say it would just change SMSF behaviour, leading to lower government tax coffers.
IFM expands in US with $9.3b pipeline acquisition
IFM Investors continued its expansion into the US energy sector with the $9.3 billion purchase of Houston-based pipeline operator Buckeye.
Loss of franking credits will lead to $100b exodus
If Labor succeeds in making franking credits non-refundable, retirees will flee SMSFs in a bid to get maximum value from their shareholdings, Realm risk committee chairman Ken Liow said.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
How to invest $1 billion with purpose
Andy Kuper's LeapFrog private equity business has reached 167 million people living in poverty and achieved returns of about 40 per cent.
Rod Sims plays poker with David Teoh
Two mavericks, ACCC chairman Rod Sims and TPG boss David Teoh, will face off in court over the TPG-Vodafone merger. Both will bring their best poker faces.
Federal Election
- Exclusive
- Federal election
Business needs to make the case for reform: Morrison
Having been burnt in the past, PM Scott Morrison says it's up to business leaders to make the case for IR reforms.
Australia can't make up its mind
From Queensland coal miners to West Australian teachers, the nation can't agree on who should be prime minister.
Warringah will be a 'fight to the death'
Warringah is the contest that could - just possibly - decide the federal election, writes Andrew Clark.
- Opinion
- Federal election
Labor’s fiscal fantasy
The obvious danger with Labor’s fiscal formula is that it fails to raise the revenue it projects and its social spending blows out.
Bookmakers suggest swing to Labor is on
If the nation's bookmakers are on the money, Australian federal politics is a week away from losing some of its biggest names, including Tony Abbott.
Business
The case that could reshape banking
The discretion of the big banks to shape their own lending decisions is being tested in court, with ramifications for investors, home buyers and the economy.
ACCC needs smoking gun on merger block
Rod Sims faces an embarrassing court loss unless he can produce a smoking gun to justify blocking the TPG Telecom-Vodafone Hutchison Australia merger.
Life360 passes first day of ASX litmus test
Shares in family tracking app company Life360 surged 10.9 per cent on debut in a result that may bolster the pursuit of foreign tech companies to list on the ASX.
Vodafone NZ sale to pave the way for a 5G network
The $2.5 billion sale price could provide the operator with the balance sheet strength it needs to pursue the technology.
Potential Crown suitor Wynn CEO tips M&A deals
Wynn Resorts is on the look out for top tier assets, particularly in Asia, though its CEO failed to say specifically that another tilt at Crown was in the works.
Foxtel under pressure, Delany sees green shoots
Foxtel got a boost from Kayo and Game of Thrones, but earnings are still declining.
Prospa lures investors with discounted offer
The small business lender aims to escape the cloud of its aborted 2018 listing with a slightly more conservatively priced float offering.
Markets
US stocks stage late rally on trade optimism
Stocks on Wall Street closed higher for the first time in five days on renewed optimism that an all-out trade war can be averted.
Uber's rocky debut dents market value
Uber Technologies slumped more than 7 per cent in its first session as a public company, ending the day below its last private value.
Property slump steers RBA towards 1pc cash rate
The Reserve Bank's own forecasts imply that it will have to cut the cash rate to 1 per cent.
Why the RBA thinks we shouldn't worry about low bond yields
Central banks these days provide so much forward guidance that term premium in the bond market has been crushed.
US 'swimming in grain' with no end in sight
he US Department of Agriculture forecast bigger-than-expected domestic supplies of corn, soybeans and wheat, with outlooks for big harvests.
Opinion
Tectonic shift in the debate as election nears
You may have heard the sound of something snapping in the federal election campaign this week.
Columnist
Lowe's finger hovers over rate cut button
Australia is set to see interest rates hit fresh historic lows in coming months, unless strong jobs market and rising commodity prices come to the aid of dwindling growth and inflation.
Columnist
Low confidence that the numbers will hold
If there is any sort of significant external economic shock, any modestly bigger surplus that a Labor government may have accrued would be overwhelmed.
Editorial
AusSuper dumps three equities managers
The country's largest super fund has cleaned out the last of its large cap active equity fund managers as it moves more asset management in-house.
Columnist
Politics
Taylor's promise on power price cuts torn apart
The Grattan Institute estimates the Coalition government's actions may only reduce household power bills by 3.1 per cent.
- Opinion
- Federal election
Countering Hanson's legacy in Asia
For a country which has squandered its soft power over the last decade, Australia needs to grab foreign policy advantages where it finds them.
Witness X in Rush case revealed
Hollywood actress Yael Stone has been revealed as Witness X in Geoffrey Rush's defamation battle with the Daily Telegraph, after the trial judge lifted a suppression order on her identity.
Labor charges electric vehicle market
Labor's target of having half of all new car sales electric by 2030 is ambitious but not impossible as cheaper vehicles hit the Australian market.
- Exclusive
- Federal election
Labor will be 'destroyed' by Adani in central and North Qld
Adani's $2 billion Carmichael mine won't go away for the ALP ahead of next Saturday's election.
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World
US gives China one-month reprieve
China has a month to seal a trade deal or face tariffs on all its exports to the US, even as both sides sought to avoid a public breakdown in negotiations.
PNG PM battles to save his job
The PNG opposition has raised questions over a $1.2 billion loan arranged by UBS Australia in their attempt to bring down the government.
China to retaliate against Trump tariffs
Donald Trump has followed through on his threat to slap additional tariffs on Chinese goods, escalating a trade war between Australia's two biggest trading partners.
N Korea launches more missiles; US seizes ship
Tensions flare anew as the rogue nation fires missiles 470 kilometres out to sea, the second such launch in less than a week despite friendly talks with Trump.
Secret US 'ninja bomb' targets individuals
A previously secret US missile designed to target individual terrorists deploys a ring of six long blades immediately before impact.
Real Estate
Steller run ends: Nicholas Smedley, Simon Pitard dissolve partnership
The company says existing projects will be completed, and sites for future development will be sold.
Australian property still world's most expensive
You can buy a nine-bedroom chateau set in parkland in France for the price of a two-bedroom apartment in Sydney.
Petrolheads and pilots redefine retirement living
What better way to retire than with like-minded souls who share your interests? Meet the hot rodders and plane enthusiasts building their own communities.
The hurdles for DIY super property investments
If Labor wins the election, trustees may have to become a lot smarter if they want to include property in their portfolios, writes John Wasiliev, who seeks answers to your questions on superannuation.
- Opinion
- Flat Chat
Affordable housing is a challenge for all ages
As developers are more motivated by profits than social policy, there are calls for government and not-for-profits to build more – even in 'protected' suburbs.
Personal Finance
- Opinion
- Monetary policy
The coming of Aussie quantitative easing
RBA Governor Phil Lowe may be comfortable cutting rates because he has unconventional tools at his disposal as the cash rate nears zero.
NAB to junk 50 fees and charges
Business banking specialist accelerates program to streamline offerings and cease practices that annoy customers.
Macquarie and ANZ ignore RBA and cut rates
Major lenders are restructuring portfolios to cut rates as RBA sits on its hands.
Technology
- Opinion
- AI
Data economy means more change to Australia
The 15-year rise of platform companies has largely gone unchecked. It's time for Australia to take the lead in setting an ethical framework for data collection, writes Adrian Turner.
Silicon Valley gets a stock exchange
The Long-Term Stock Exchange will give high-growth tech companies more options to list their shares outside of New York.
Time to bust open Facebook
The man who helped Mark Zuckerberg create Facebook says the US Congress should bust up its giant monopoly as it did earlier with oil and telco behemoths.
Leadership
'I couldn't afford to do it myself' says Aussie Eurovision entrant
Kate Miller-Heidke, Australia's 2019 Eurovision representative, has had to dig deep to secure her place in the singing competition.
Why birth order doesn't shape personality
We all know that where you are in the age hierarchy of siblings dictates who you are, right? Well, perhaps not.
Lifestyle
Why live music is rarely live
Pop stars were once expected to be able to deliver the goods aided only by a mic and a band.
History lesson finely crafted in Peterloo
On the 200th anniversary of Peterloo, director Mike Leigh is asking why this seminal moment in English history is not better known and more widely commemorated.
The works that changed art forever
Marcel Duchamp redefined what art was. An exhibition brings together iconic pieces and some of his lesser-known works.
Archibald winner reflects the changing face of Australian art
The subject of the winning entrant in the prestigious prize is, for the first time in its 98-year history, an Asian-Australian
Going vegan? You can drink to that
The image of the red-nosed imbiber, clutching a full-bodied shiraz, is no more.
