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ASX to rise; CBA Q1 cash profit slides 16pc to $1.8b

ASX futures point to another strong open; Nasdaq slides but the Dow rises; RBNZ delays lift in bank capital requirements; URW shareholders reject equity injection.

CBA CEO Matt Comyn at the bank's headquarters in September 2020.

CBA quarterly cash profit down 16pc to $1.8b

Australia's largest bank feels the squeeze of lower rates and higher provisioning as cash profit falls sharply.

President-elect Joe Biden said Trump's refusal to acknowledge him would not help the President's legacy.

Trump's failure to concede 'an embarrassment': Biden

Biden taps Gensler to review Fed, other federal banking authorities. Mike Pompeo rebuked for Trump second term comments. Senate leaders to retain positions for now. Follow live updates here.

Why Australia's vaccine boost will take time

Having proved it is possible to provide some protection against COVID-19, Pfizer's vaccine has become a bellwether for other vaccines.

Japan Post bankers in six-point pitch to Toll suitors

JPMorgan and Nomura's opening pitch, more than a dozen pages long and obtained by Street Talk, focused on the business' scale, footprint and market positions within Australia's transport sector.

'Worst I've seen': Albanese, Fitzgibbon go at it hammer and tongs

Monday night's shadow cabinet meeting was the most explosive many had witnessed as Joel Fitzgibbon and Anthony Albanese traded blows over the US election and climate change.

US complains about WHO-led China probe

Victoria: no new cases, no new deaths. Morgan Stanley sees continued trend of rising cases across Western Europe. Australia will have to wait for a chance at the Pfizer vaccine. Follow live updates.

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US ELECTION AFTERMATH

Senator McConnell continues to push back against the Democrats' stimulus package.

McConnell digs in on stimulus package

The Senate majority leader says last week’s fall in the jobless rate to 6.9 per cent shows the US economy is weathering the storm "a whole lot better" than thought.

Biden supporters celebrate in Atlanta, Georgia. A swing in the suburbs helped push the President-elect over the line.

How America's suburbs moved away from Trump

On average, Joe Biden improved on Hillary Clinton's performance in 373 suburban counties around the US by about 4.6 percentage points.

Then-defence secretary Mark Esper, centre, accompanying President Trump on his walk across Lafayette Square outside the White House.

More in the firing line as Trump 'terminates' Esper

Two White House officials said Mr Trump was not finished, and that Christopher Wray, the FBI director, and Gina Haspel, the CIA director, could be next in line to be fired.

Fox News cuts away from Kayleigh McEnany after she alleges vote fraud

Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto cut in to end Fox's broadcast from the White House, saying: "I can't in good countenance continue showing you this."

'Hoaxes and nonsense': GOP election officials reject Trump fraud claims

Gabriel Sterling, a lifelong Republican who manages Georgia's voting system, took to a lectern at the Capitol to dismiss criticism of election illegalities in the state as "fake news" and "disinformation".

Companies

Harvey Norman's high-interest credit card.

Harvey Norman's high-interest credit card gets a Shonky Award

White Lady Funerals also made it onto this year's list by consumer advocacy group Choice, in which companies are called out for taking advantage of customers.

Jemena's Northern Gas Pipeline between Tennant Creek and Mount Isa would be expanded as part of the plan.

Jemena eyes partners for $5b-plus northern gas push

The unlisted gas pipeline owner is hoping to build more than 2000 kilometres of gas pipelines in the north over the next five to 10 years.

Glencore had a partial victory in the Federal Court.

Glencore secures transfer pricing victory

The Anglo-Swiss mining giant's legal victory against the Tax Office could be Australia's most significant transfer pricing decision.

Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar announced the changes on Tuesday.

Big businesses face new penalties for unfair contracts

The long-awaited shake-up is aimed at stopping big companies from squeezing small business partners.

Nutrien says farmers need partners with financial firepower

Canada's Nutrien defends foreign investment in agriculture a year on boosting its already dominant position in farm supplies with the acquisition of Ruralco.

'The best news the travel industry has had all year'

Plummeting COVID-19 cases are encouraging Australians to book domestic holidays and news of a potential vaccine means overseas holidays may also be on the horizon.

NAB won’t budge further in fees-for-no-service case

The bank has drawn a line in the sand and rejects allegations of unconscionable conduct as being a bridge too far.

Markets

An early vaccine is not a prerequisite for an economic growth upgrade, but a late one could knock off 4 percent from growth.

How the economic outlook changes with vaccine timing

Getting an early vaccine is not a prerequisite for the Reserve Bank to upgrade economic growth. But a late vaccine could hurt growth, according to Goldman Sachs.

The Nasdaq took it on the chin again.

What happened in markets overnight

Australian shares are poised to extend their advance. Wall Street is mixed. Oil, gold higher. $A flat.

Pfizer's early data says its vaccine is 90 per cent effective.

Global markets need a dose of vaccine reality

Progress on a COVID-19 vaccine is to be welcomed but the Federal Reserve is right to warn about the "significant" risks to asset prices.

A wake-up call for ETF investors

The booming exchange traded funds industry has traps for those who don't do their due diligence, according to a leading academic.

Pfizer vaccine threatens tech's outperformance

An improvement to the macro outlook on a COVID-19 vaccine could harm the valuations, if not the earnings, of tech businesses, according to analysts.

Opinion

Why an AMP board role is one of the trickiest jobs right now

The AMP board is under enormous pressure to wrap up the sale of the embattled group before it haemorrhages too many more staff or clients and the country heads off on summer holiday.

Karen Maley

Columnist

Karen Maley

Rules shift on the climate battlefield

Joel Fitzgibbon's resignation from Labor's frontbench is another example of Australia's continuing political brawls over climate changing policy. But the business community and the states are taking a different path.

Way to throw your CEO under a bus

Corporate leaders believe the Cartier watch scandal reveals that Canberra holds unrealistic expectations of the talented executives hired from the private sector.

Karen Maley

Columnist

Karen Maley

Australia's special interest in Biden's success

Failure to contain the pandemic will damage Joe Biden's authority – and make it more difficult to deal with the key China, climate, and trade policy challenges that matter for Australia. writes Alan Mitchell.

Alan Mitchell

Contributor

Alan Mitchell

I took the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. It's a miracle for genetic medicine

The great news about RNA vaccines is that they can easily be reprogrammed. Even after we defeat COVID-19, new viruses will come along.

Walter Isaacson

Contributor

Walter Isaacson

Trump lost politicising COVID; let's not repeat the mistake

Pfizer's vaccine breakthrough is a classic public-private partnership between big government and big pharma. Turning the drug into a red versus blue state controversy will only discourage people from taking it.

Max Boot

Contributor

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Politics

Simon Atkinson, Secretary of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications.

Culture review for unit at heart of $29.8m airport land deal

The NSW government unit - which is at the centre of the $27 million overpayment for land for the new Western Sydney Airport - will face a review after "very substantial" problems.

Joel Fitzgibbon has quit the Labor frontbench.

Albanese faces leadership test as climate tensions rise

Anthony Albanese's leadership is facing scrutiny after Joel Fitzgibbon's departure exposed the extent of the party's split over climate policy.

The rare public review cites Bill Shorten's unpopularity as a key factor in Labor's defeat.

Surveying too many Labor voters led to election polling 'fail'

Pollsters needs to adjust their methodology to gauge the views of less politically-engaged voters, industry report finds.

PM rules out action against ministers over sex allegations

Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded to allegations aired on the ABC by challenging Labor and the Canberra press gallery over their conduct inside Parliament House.

Fitzgibbon quits frontbench as ALP climate crisis escalates

Shadow resources and agriculture minister Joel Fitzgibbon has quit the shadow cabinet over climate change policy.

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World

Operation Warp Speed, the US search for a vaccine, has an overall budget to award of as much as $US18 billion ($26 billion).

Inside Operation Warp Speed’s $26b sprint for a vaccine

It’s expensive, secretive, and the US government's best hope of emerging from the pandemic. A vaccine breakthrough this week has breathed new life into the mission.

Francis Fukuyama

Francis Fukuyama on fame, grand postulations and woodwork

The political philosopher, who has published ten books and teaches at Stanford University, spends his free time making furniture.

Singles' Day frenzy last year. Alibaba is hoping for even more online shopping action this year.

Alibaba insists recession, political spat will not hurt Singles' Day sales

The world's biggest online shopping extravaganza kicks off in China on Wednesday, and Australian products traditionally rank high in the list of volume of sales to the planet's largest consumer market.

Britain bids to maintain post-Brexit London's financial pre-eminence

Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveils climate measures and digital plans for financial services, as the EU dithers over keeping the door open.

South Korea financial groups look to raise billions via IPOs

As many as six large financial companies are lining up listings on the Seoul bourse, starting in 2021 with the planned debuts of KakaoPay and Hyundai Card.

Property

Spending surged in Victoria after the end of lockdowns, lifiting share prices for the shopping centre sector.

Vaccine news a shot in the arm for malls, offices

Shopping mall owners and office landlords bounced on news of a successful vaccine, but logistics giant Goodman, which has surged on the increase in e-commerce, fell back.

The office will play an important role in retaining staff in the future but those in the real estate industry believe large corporate tenants will also decrease their space requirements.

Large companies want flexible office space after pandemic

Large corporate tenants around the globe will seek out more versatile office footprints and lease contracts, according to a new report.

Shi Zhengrong, the founder and chief technology officer of Sunman - the company that has produced new light-weight solar panels that will slash power bills at the National Maritime Museum in Sydney.

Green energy fund backs Sunman's 'solar skins'

The investment into the lightweight solar panel comes as Sunman pushes ahead with plans to dramatically expand its range of possible uses.

Investors pump up Sydney servo prices

Cushman & Wakefield's latest auction shows how record-low borrowing costs make commercial assets with guaranteed returns attractive to investors.

Prestige property prices prove immune to pandemic

Australian cities' luxury property markets are continuing to see price growth despite the COVID-19 pandemic and Australia's first recession in three decades.

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Wealth

Domestically the prospects for a vaccine-accelerated recovery add to other indicators of a firming outlook.

Sharemarket poised to rally into year end

Positive news of a vaccine on top of the US presidential election result has analysts hopeful of a much firmer outlook.

Property lessons from 1990s recession

While history offers hope for a strong market recovery, several concerning issues could stymie a rebound.

Funder overturns 'chilling' decision on underpayment class actions

A court ruling that scraps a precedent requiring litigation funders to pay millions of dollars in costs upfront will prompt an increase in industrial relations class actions, lawyers say.

Technology

Brussels says it's worried about Amazon's conduct, not its size.

Brussels adds Amazon to its list of Big Tech targets

The EU says Amazon is leveraging its marketplace for its own advantage, as Brussels picks yet another trans-Atlantic fight.

State firefighting agencies will partner with Facebook to alert users in their news feeds about nearby fires.

Facebook rolls out local alerts as news boycott looms

Facebook is promising to crack down on disinformation as it rolls out a new emergency alert system ahead of this summer's bushfire season.

The PS5 is an enormous, but not unattractive, machine.

The new PlayStation 5's controller is a game-changer

The DualSense unit's so-called haptic feedback takes gaming technology to the next level in a big step forward.

Work & Careers

Adero Law founder Rory Markham says the decision will likely see more IR class actions, including for smaller underpayments.

Funder overturns 'chilling' decision on underpayment class actions

A court ruling that scraps a precedent requiring litigation funders to pay millions of dollars in costs upfront will prompt an increase in industrial relations class actions, lawyers say.

'Brutal' year for Victorian students approaches end

For final-year students approaching the VCE, it's been hard – but there have been some good lessons.

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Life & Luxury

Greater Sydney was officially declared a hot spot on Saturday.

'The best news the travel industry has had all year'

Plummeting COVID-19 cases are encouraging Australians to book domestic holidays and news of a potential vaccine means overseas holidays may also be on the horizon.

Kristian Connelly, CEO of Cinema Nova in Carlton, is happy to welcome patrons back to the movies.

Melbourne cinemas want help to keep the lights off

The projectors are rolling in Melbourne cinemas again, but operators say the industry needs a tailored support package to help it recover from lockdown. 

With its huge footprint and chassis smarts, the Turbo S corners without a hint of roll or drama.

Want an electric 911? Porsche's CEO has a message for you

Brand boss Oliver Blume weighs up the options for the future of the quintessential German sports car, including a hybrid.

A Mediterranean diet would do the trick, say researchers.

You don't have to become vegan to save planet, says study

Researchers looked at five types of broad fixes to the food system and found that counting your calories can be just as effective.

The perfect "aha" moment - in a hammock in Arnhem Land.

Hit refresh with a bucket-list trip at home (and get NZ-ready)

As the nation prepares for borders up by Christmas, we look north – and across the pond – for inspiring ideas to help ease you out on the road.

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