Feds lash Andrews on virus tracing
Business leaders and the federal government say Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews' decision to delay the next reopening announcement shows a lack of faith in the state's contact tracing system.
ASX to rise, earnings set to accelerate
Australian shares are poised to open higher as reporting season, in particular in the US, moves forward. $A edges higher.
- Exclusive
- Governance
Shipton's tax bill to trigger ASIC overhaul
ASIC chairman James Shipton demanded KPMG compensate him for alleged tax advice errors that led to a $12,000 personal tax penalty, as Treasurer Josh Frydenberg considers a shake-up of ASIC's leadership.
- Exclusive
- Australian recession
IMF urges tax reform to boost COVID-19 recovery
Australia has been urged to embrace 'long-standing' recommendations to reduce business taxes and increase the GST to boost investment and create jobs.
Drought's over: fund managers flock to rural property
The end of a crippling drought and the pandemic have thrown a spotlight on the attractive returns on offer in prime farmland.
- Opinion
- Governance
The uncomfortable truths about Australia's cosy directors club
Ownership Matters has done the numbers, using 15 years of company director and executive data, and the information is an eye-opener about how the club works.
Carlyle, PEP lob new Link proposal, secure more commitments
It's been a busy weekend for private equity firms The Carlyle Group and Pacific Equity Partners, which are in hot pursuit of ASX-listed Link Group.
Companies
Coca-Cola Amatil, Coke Europe in merger talks
Australia's largest non-alcoholic beverage bottler is said to be in "advanced" discussions with its European counterpart for a merger or asset sales.
- Exclusive
- Aviation
Bain to cut deeper into Virgin
The US private equity giant is focused on getting labour costs below $800 million a year, which would require a far deeper cut than when it showed a third of Virgin's workforce the door.
- Exclusive
- Private equity
The real reason Quadrant bought QMS
While the Melbourne-based business is largely known for billboards, it's another side of QMS that Quadrant saw the real growth opportunity.
After toilet paper, a new shortage strikes Australia
Thinking of getting a road map? It's not that easy, says RACQ, one of Australia's largest motoring bodies.
Commercial real estate, loan deferrals in focus at bank results
ANZ kicks off the full-year earnings season for three of the big four banks on Thursday. It is expected to pay a final dividend of 40¢ a share.
- Exclusive
- AUSTRAC crackdown
NAB’s sex industry position an outlier
The bank says it stopped banking brothels and escort agencies because it could not manage the risks.
Westpac headed for defeat in advice appeal
Westpac could be headed for another legal defeat – this time in the High Court.
Markets
CVC cleans up from IPO boom
CVC Emerging Companies Fund has more than doubled since its inception in May 2019 by investing in fast-growing pre-IPO companies.
Battered Nufarm's distant light at the end of the tunnel
Australia's global crop protection player has a big job ahead of it to restore its balance sheet and turn around its struggling European business.
Low inflation still better than no inflation
In the last major data point before the RBA's highly anticipated Melbourne Cup Day meeting, the September quarter CPI result is expected to show that Australia's brief experience with deflation is over.
- Exclusive
- Superannuation
Rest Super puts Apollo on review over CEO's ties to Jeffrey Epstein
The former Catholic Super, CareSuper and Intrust all have disclosed historical allocations to Apollo Global Management.
ASX boards remain 'invitation-only', says Ownership Matters study
An extensive study of ASX 300 director appointments spanning 15 years shows that boards are dominated by members of the existing pool of directors.
Opinion
Victorians have kept their side of the bargain, has the government?
The only plausible explanation for the delay in reopening business is that even after all these months Victoria's contact tracing regime is still substandard.
Political editor
The high price of business when it's political
The community may be outraged by executive gifts of luxury watches but eyes glaze over when it comes to executive bonuses worth millions of dollars. And James Shipton's plans to return to the corporate regulator won't be realised.
Columnist
Why Frydenberg needs to take the axe to ASIC
If, as is widely expected, James Shipton steps down as chair of ASIC, the Treasurer will have an opportunity to choose a new leader from outside the organisation to orchestrate huge change at the beleaguered organisation.
Columnist
Political storm strengthens case for privatising Australia Post
Scott Morrison's over-the-top reaction to Australia Post's CEO Christine Holgate is about decreasing the political pressure for a federal ICAC.
Editorial
Queensland isn't just a COVID-19 election
The state's highly regionalised politics include the different attitudes to the pandemic in Brisbane and the bush. So border populism doesn't mean Annastacia Palaszczuk is assured of victory on Saturday.
Contributor
The financials stack up for investing in ethical infrastructure
Making Australian companies 10 per cent more ethical would generate a $45 billion increase in prosperity every year.
Contributor
Politics
Restaurant, gym owners losing patience with Daniel Andrews
While restaurants, retailers and beauty services can still look forward to reopening in November, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has given no indication of when Melbourne gyms can open their doors.
Bonuses, corporate culture face investigation at Australia Post
Licensed post office operators are defending Christine Holgate, pledging $5 contributions to repay the cost of four Cartier watches.
- Exclusive
- The Paladin Affair
Paladin owners pocketed $71m in 2019
The owners of controversial security firm Paladin received $71 million in dividends in 2019, the year its $532 million refugee contract on Manus Island came to an end.
Bonus millions for Premier's McInnes riles Labor
Federal Labor frontbencher Stephen Jones has accused retail billionaire Solomon Lew's Premier Investments of 'feathering their own nests', after paying multimillion-dollar executive bonuses while receiving JobKeeper wage subsidies.
Behaving more ethically will boost Australia's economic recovery
A 10 per cent rise in ethical behaviour by companies and government institutions would add $45 billion to GDP, a new study finds.
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World
Tense days ahead as Trump blitz narrows gaps in battleground states
In a campaign surge that mirrors his winning 2016 strategy, the US President is planning to hold three or four rallies a day until election day.
White House: China's 'digital dossiers' to blackmail and intimidate
Donald Trump's top China specialist says the Zhenhua database revealed last month is only a small part of Beijing's foreign interference campaign.
- Analysis
- US election
Trans-Atlantic tensions set to linger even under a Biden presidency
Experts suggest a Trump win would exacerbate the fraught relations, while a Biden White House would at least reset them.
- Analysis
- US votes 2020
Fire, star power deployed to clean up Biden's oil spill
Barack Obama is providing Joe Biden with welcome ballast just as President Trump hits more disciplined messaging, writes Joe Aston.
- Opinion
- World elections
November election a step towards democracy, Myanmar-style
There is reason for cautious optimism the procedural aspects of the 2020 elections will be fair, as the population demands. But there’s still cause for pessimism about the near-term prospects for Myanmar’s democracy.
Property
Strong auction clearances point to rising prices in Sydney
Sydney records an 80.4 per cent clearance rate on preliminary figures and the Melbourne market has also stepped up.
Regional hotspots where house prices have surged
While Australia's two largest housing markets have suffered over the course of the pandemic, many of the country's regional towns have been going from strength to strength.
Online entrepreneur makes new life in Hunter Valley vineyard
Pedestrian TV founder Oscar Martin bought the Krinklewood Vineyard in the Hunter Valley to escape the city bustle.
- Exclusive
- Commercial real estate
Time & Place buys Melbourne site for 62-level apartment tower
The privately owned developer will retain one-third of the units and offer them out as short-stay lets – and invite other owners to do the same.
Uncertain regulatory environment clouds PEXA's value
While the extent of competition the dominant e-conveyancing platform will face is unclear, one investor is confident it will continue to prevail.
Wealth
- Exclusive
- Pharmaceuticals
Billionaire families back early stage medical cannabis company
CannaPacific is hoping to capitalise on the increasing acceptance of the medical cannabis industry, which is tipped to reach $1.7 billion in value by 2024.
- Opinion
- Sharemarket
Ways to cash in on regenerative medicine
An Australian listed company is at the forefront of mass production of pharmaceutical-grade exosomes, which carry messages to other cells in the body.
- Opinion
- Property market
Rentvesting offers best of both worlds to first-home buyers
Lower rents in the inner city make it attractive to lease there while buying in suburbs where lease agreements have been stronger.
Technology
How Amazon is integrated into a university degree
Tertiary institutions are experimenting with ways to get advanced skills into curriculums, at short notice.
Apple, Google and a deal that controls the internet
What if Google and Apple used their $3 trillion power over the web? The US Justice Department, which won't brook any deal, has filed a lawsuit against Google.
- Analysis
- Competition
Google lawsuit just the opening salvo in battle to restrain Big Tech
With broad political support, antitrust action could lay the groundwork for many more cases against the world's biggest disrupters.
Work & Careers
VET credentials under threat as industry pushes private degrees
Companies such as Facebook, IBM and Google are offering high-speed qualifications that cannot be controlled by Australian regulators.
Innovator wants students to learn without teachers
An Adelaide business has bought the Australian licence for a French software education company.
Life & Luxury
How to be boss of Tourism Australia when the world is not our oyster
Pip Harrison has had her work cut out, forced to switch from selling Australia to the world to persuading us to spend our travel dollars right here at home.
If Jesus came today would he be a Polish hoodlum?
Polish director Jan Komasa's latest film, Corpus Christi, examines the transformative nature of true religion and how that clashes with the religiosity of the church.
'Magic and intimate': Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival
With seats limited to be COVID-safe, this year's Sydney International Women's Jazz Festival will bring audiences and performers closer than ever before.
Why there's nothing like eating out at a restaurant
No matter how clever the product, how perfect the produce, that all-important sense of connection can be found only by going out and mixing with real people.
