How the virus will change us
It's the sharpest shock since the Depression and the biggest social and business disruption since WWII. What shadows will the pandemic cast for the future?
Tasmanian hospitals at centre of growing outbreak
Australia is on the cusp of controlling the epidemic but wage subsidies could last longer than six months and border controls up to two years, authorities said today. Read the latest virus news here.
Wall St caps best week since 1974
Wall Street closed out its best week in 45 years on Thursday after the Federal Reserve launched its latest titanic effort to support the economy through the coronavirus outbreak.
Don Harwin quits over holiday home scandal
The NSW arts minister was at the centre of public outrage after it was revealed he left Sydney for his Central Coast beach house during the COVID-19 crisis.
Victoria pulls plug on property inspections in occupied homes
Industry body slams "absolutely disgraceful" behaviour in which estate agents were informed of new rules at 5.35pm just before a long weekend.
How to lift the lockdown in six to eight weeks
Expanded testing and doctors having discretion are key to unlocking COVID-19 restrictions early, according to one top biosecurity expert.
Why Morrison dropped the 'snap back' strategy
The political task ahead for Prime Minister Scott Morrison is mammoth. First, how to keep a society and an economy in hibernation to save lives. And then, how to wake it up.
How the coronavirus is changing markets, business and politics.
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coronavirus pandemic
This crisis isn't looking so bad
The worst-case medical outcome has almost certainly been averted. But the economic outlook is less certain.
Coronavirus Live: How the infection is spreading
The coronavirus is spreading in all Australian states. The total number of confirmed cases in Australia has exceeded 6000. Here's the latest on the numbers.
Boris Johnson unlikely to be back at work soon
The British PM spends his fifth day in hospital after contracting COVID-19 and father Stanley Johnson says he will need to take extra time to recover.
Wage subsidy could be extended
The $130 billion JobKeeper scheme could be extended beyond its initial six months if the economic carnage brought on by the coronavirus crisis is protracted, Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says.
Ambassador to Indonesia returns due to COVID-19
Ambassador Gary Quinlan will be running the Jakarta embassy from Australia after relocating due to medical advice.
Companies
How GFC winners are playing it now
Dion Hershan, Anton Tagliaferro, David Pace and Nick Pashias outline how they're viewing COVID-19 in terms of traps and opportunities.
How Webjet survived 17 days in virus ICU
Roger Sharp was mountain biking with some mates in Central Otago, on New Zealand’s south island, when his phone rang.
- Opinion
- Coronavirus pandemic
Commercial property a key risk for banks: RBA
The bank's gloomy assessment echoes the view of leading bankers who say the commercial property market "is looking ugly", with valuations falling sharply.
Virus-hit childcare group G8 freezes dividends, raises $301m
Risks lie in how long the coronavirus will have parents keeping their kids away from centres, the childcare giant warns.
COVID-19 delays plague Iluka's rich BHP royalty demerger
The mineral sands miner is determined to spin off its lucrative BHP iron ore royalty but the timetable is now unclear.
The retailers best placed to beat COVID-19
Morgan Stanley names its two best small-cap consumer stocks best placed to withstand the COVID-19 downturn, while boasting leverage to an economic recovery.
Rio Tinto says pandemic no excuse to delay climate action
Rio Tinto chairman Simon Thompson's climate call comes as a company shareholder indicated he was open to dividend cuts if required to fund climate action
Markets
Surviving the COVID-19 market crash
"I was broking back in '87, but this was very different. It's unlike anything we've seen before." March 2020 broke all records for stockbroking teams trying to manage record workloads while being directed to work from home.
Australian dollar surges to near one-month high
The local currency rose to its highest in almost a month as the US dollar fell on news of the latest effort by the Federal Reserve to bolster the US economy.
Russia, Saudi Arabia agree to cut oil output
The cuts by OPEC and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, amount to 10 million barrels per day (bpd) or 10 per cent of global supplies.
ASX soars 3.5pc; Virgin suspends all but one flight
The Australian sharemarket has closed its last session before the Easter long weekend higher; CSL rose more than 5 per cent after reaffirming its profit guidance.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Why Howard Marks says don't wait to start buying
Each time a market crashes, investors want to buy bargains, but this is impossible to pick and experts say find quality companies and buy when they are cheaper.
Opinion
Keep the faith to rise up from this calamity
Between flattening the curve and building the economic bridge to the other side, Australians have every reason to keep faith with the way that the country has handled this crisis.
Editorial
The RBA's long-term worry is stability
Loan repayment holidays have removed the immediate pressure. But what if borrowers are still in poor shape in six months?
Contributor
Navigating the pandemic trilemma
Is it possible to have good health, a prospering economy, and liberty all at the same time?
Contributor
Investors reel as banks suspend dividends
Bank shareholders have given up any hope of receiving an interim dividend from ANZ, Westpac and NAB, but they're hopeful that Macquarie and Commonwealth Bank may still deliver.
Columnist
Prime Minister pivots to an early exit
As Australia passes through the peak in infections, the government will dump its six-month business hibernation strategy.
Columnist
This great leveller will end, but the world will be different
In the same way the Black Death impacted art and religion, COVID-19 will shape our post-pandemic reality.
Senior Writer
Politics
Property loan retreat by non-banks
La Trobe Financial will cancel some real estate loans it had approved, partly in reaction to government-enforced rent holidays and eviction moratoriums.
- Opinion
- Coronavirus pandemic
Lives matter but at what cost?
COVID-19 mostly kills the aged, but a generation in the prime of life suffers in the shutdown. Should policymakers prioritise people of all ages equally?
Millions at a time: RBA reveals run on cash during panic
Extra cash had to be trucked to bank vaults after depositors rushed to withdraw large amounts - in some cases millions of dollars - as the stockmarket tanked last month because of fears about the coronavirus pandemic.
RBA to big super: don't expect a liquidity bailout
The RBA is wary of providing emergency loans to superannuation funds experiencing sudden member cash withdrawals, because allowing super funds to borrow money could increase risk.
Sunshine State leads solar PV uptake
Queensland has five of the top 10 solar postcodes in Australia, as the surge in popularity in roof-top solar systems shows no sign of abating.
World
Record 16.6m people are jobless in the US in just three weeks
For the second week in a row, more than 6 million Americans made unemployment claims, suggesting about 10 per cent of the workforce is jobless.
Liveris calls the start of the on-shoring era
Andrew Liveris, the former Dow Chemical chief who helped write manufacturing policy for Barack Obama and Donald Trump – and is now doing the same for Scott Morrison – believes the post-coronavirus economy needs an historic overhaul.
Bernie Sanders to end presidential campaign
"As I see the crisis gripping the nation," Sanders told supporters, "I cannot in good conscience continue to mount a campaign that cannot win."
What happened to the US election?
Election 2020 may have taken a back seat as the coronavirus rages across America. But there's a lot happening right now that will determine the outcome.
Lobster back on the menu for recovering China
China’s demand for rock lobster is bouncing back just in time for Australia’s struggling fishermen.
Property
Quest tells retiree landlords: We can't pay you any rent
With occupancy rates between zero and 10 per cent, Quest hotel franchisees have written to their landlords - many of them self-funded retirees - to say they won't pay any rent until July.
Airbnb accused of misleading property owners
Airbnb is accused of confusing NSW hosts about a new strata law that bans short-term letting by investors, in a bid to delay it being taken up by strata schemes.
Centuria Industrial REIT kicks off equity raise
Centuria Industrial REIT is the second listed property trust to undertaking an equity raise in the past week.
Fund manager offloads Brisbane industrial estate
The deal for the Pinkenba estate was struck on a yield of 5.8 per cent and is one of the biggest this year in Brisbane to date.
- Opinion
- Property investment
What the shutdown means for property investors
At a time of global crisis, landlords are being required to share some of the financial challenges faced by their tenants, writes Robert Harley.
Wealth
- Opinion
- Flat Chat
No leeway for levies and fees as shortfalls bite
It's time to think about contingency plans if your building’s finances are tight and some owners can't pay up.
Holiday home owners look to long-term renters to ease pain
Rental listings surged in the second half of March as short-stay landlords switched to the longer-term market in a COVID-19 world.
- Opinion
- Coronavirus pandemic
COVID-19 puts squeeze on older Australians' finances
Cash-strapped retirees facing caveats on their homes may be better off with a reverse mortgage.
Technology
How to have drinks with mates without the threat of jail time
Houseparty promises the sort of catch-up drinks that would get you jail time in the time of COVID-19. So, how did it go?
Meet SafetyCulture, Australia's latest unicorn
The workplace safety platform boasts a $1.35 billion valuation after it completed a mid-pandemic venture round that included Malcolm Turnbull.
Altium paints rosy picture but withdraws guidance
Altium still believes its operating model is robust and it's committed to its 2020 target of $US200 million in revenue, despite withdrawing guidance.
Work & Careers
Prison tips on keeping fit in lockdown
From jump squats to the creative use of tuna cans ex-prisoner Joe Kwon takes us through the best exercises for confined spaces.
Norton Rose slashes hours, partner pay, admin staff
Norton Rose Fulbright is cutting staff hours by up to 20 per cent, slashing partner pay and standing down 2-3 per cent of its workforce in response to the COVID-19 downturn.
Life & Luxury
80 great books to try over the lockdown: Part 2
Authors David Astle, Heather Rose, Chris Hammer, Miranda Tapsell, Andy Griffiths and James Bradley nominate titles worth your time.
Great books to try during Easter
Aussie novelists Hannah Richell, Matthew Reilly, Minnie Darke, Michael Robotham and Will Kostakis have some diverse suggestions for books to escape into.
Happy films to while away the hours in isolation
We all seem to have more time to watch TV in quarantine. Good thing that there's a backlog of great films worth catching while responsibly being in social isolation.
- Opinion
- Gadgets
Shoot to thrill with Fujifilm's X100V
Emulating the feel of a war-time photographer's camera, Fuji's latest will have you creating master portraiture – just make sure you carry your identity papers.
BMW's new SUV is more like a supercar
Visually or aurally, there's nothing quiet about the X4 M Competition, which is the latest in a long line of SUVs from the German car company.
