Judge-only trial for Porter case ‘won’t pass pub test’
The ABC is expected to push for a jury trial in its defamation battle with Attorney-General Christian Porter.
Why Forrest’s green power station is being blocked
Energy Minister Angus Taylor is refusing to rule out spending taxpayers’ money on a power station like the one Andrew Forrest wants to build with his own cash.
Doctors complain of ‘gag’ on AstraZeneca
High-profile doctors say they can’t voice their concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine, amid claims the federal government has bet heavily on it to protect Australians.
Inside lane: how Barrenjoey cut in on UBS
Upstart investment banking firm Barrenjoey has scooped up a mandate from a long-term and lucrative UBS client.
Bigger, leaner Pepper courts investors for IPO 2.0
The non-bank lender is focused only on Australia and New Zealand, according to a pitch to fund managers made in the past week.
- Opinion
- Monetary policy
Why central banks have changed their thinking about inflation
As global economic activity rebounds from the pandemic, investors are increasingly frustrated with the sangfroid central bankers are showing over inflation risks.
Coalition MPs fight back over sex abuse claims
A female Liberal MP has accused the Opposition and the ABC of ignoring the ‘bullying and harassment’ that led her to quit politics.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
INVEST IN AUSTRALIA
Property is booming but headwinds are looming too
At a time of pandemic and changing consumer and lifestyle habits, Australia’s $1.2-trillion commercial real estate market is keeping its head above water.
Australia’s lure will last only as long as its reform
Australia’s economic recovery has been a great advertisement for attracting investment and skills, but will there be enough reform to sustain it?
Immigration the missing piece of the COVID economic recovery
As long as borders remain shut, population will continue to be the missing piece of Australia’s economic recovery out of the coronavirus pandemic, writes Ronald Mizen.
Down Under feels like top of the world after wild pandemic wave
Australia has fared better than most nations emerging from the pandemic with an economic contraction of 2.5 per cent, writes Tom McIlroy.
Australia awash with opportunities in energy transition
Huge investment will be required to help the world decarbonise and large-scale hydrogen has emerged as a major opportunity for Australia.
THE SURE THING PODCAST
- Exclusive
- The Sure Thing
‘You’re famous now’: the moment Chris Hill learnt of betrayal
It was only when he heard of a $7 million figure that Hill, who was in a police car after being arrested, realised the scale of the conspiracy he’d been plunged into.
Lessons from the making of The Sure Thing
Video: Angus Grigg and the University of Sydney’s professor Clinton Free on white-collar crime and the making of The Sure Thing podcast at the AFR Business Summit.
- Opinion
- The Sure Thing
How white-collar criminals sleep easy at night
A researcher who has spent the past decade in prisons across the US and Australia says there are four main ways white-collar criminals justify their actions.
- Exclusive
- The Sure Thing
Insider trader paid for $2.4m Block apartment with 25-minute trade
Lukas Kamay paid $2.375 million for an apartment from TV show The Block with a single trade that took just 25 minutes, while taunting police as they struggled to catch him.
Listen now: The Sure Thing episode 3
In one trade, Lukas Kamay took out more than $450 million of exposure to the Australian dollar and the police had no idea how to catch Kamay and his accomplice, Christopher Hill. New episodes every Monday 6am.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
Companies
AMP Capital cuts fees in bid to retain fund under attack
The investment management arm of AMP is battling the momentum of a rival bid from Dexus, which has the backing of the independent board of the AMP Capital Diversified Fund for its merger proposal.
Payrolls point to stronger jobs, home hunting hits new high
Economists expect at least 28,000 jobs were added in February, as new data from the Commonwealth Bank pointed to the most voracious home-buying demand since 2015.
ASIC sues short-term lender ClearLoans
The corporate cop is pursing a short-term lender charging up to 43 per cent interest for hundreds of breaches of the credit act.
Arrium used EY to push lenders to forgive debt
The former CFO of collapsed steel maker Arrium has faced a four-day grilling over the company’s demise through 2015 and 2016.
iSignthis mounts defence against ASIC lawsuit
iSignthis argues that key contracts that helped management achieve bonus targets were immaterial, invoking COVID-19 disclosure relief as one element of its defence against the regulator’s action.
Incoming big-four bosses face generational challenges
The leaders set to take over at Deloitte, EY and KPMG will ride the wave of a resurgent consulting market, but will have to grapple with staffing shortages and reinvigorated competition from rivals.
Crown may face month-to-month extensions of its liquor licence
The NSW regulator doesn’t expect Crown to become suitable to open its Sydney casino before its liquor licence expires.
Markets
ASX closes 0.9pc firmer, powered by tech stocks
A drop in bond yields helped to push the local sharemarket to the highest point since February in a rally led by tech stocks.
Franklin Templeton investment boss cool on crypto’s fortunes
The $US1.4 trillion asset manger has fronted a surge in interest from investors, but remains cautious about how crypto plays out.
Fed meeting key to extending value rotation
The meeting of the Federal Reserve this week is looming as a key obstacle for the value rotation, with investors awaiting any commentary on the sharp rise in long-dated bond yields.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
‘Volatility shakes the trees’: Pendal CEO’s parting message
Emilio Gonzalez, the outgoing boss of fund manager Pendal Group, says post-COVID-19 volatility can create opportunities in funds management and all sectors.
Crude at $US100 not so unrealistic
Investors aren’t ruling out the price of crude hitting $US100 a barrel in the next few years, with a strong rebound in demand and a limited supply rebuild providing a bullish backdrop for the oil market.
Opinion
Anxious business watches IR reform go down to the wire
The government is keen to get whatever it can through the Senate this week given the political sensitivity of workplace reform and the end of JobKeeper this month.
Columnist
The challenges Cormann should tackle at OECD
By lifting the OECD’s role in four areas, the former finance minister’s time in Paris has the potential to be transformational.
Columnist
Sobering tidings from the leading edges of the pandemic
An Israeli chief executive logged on to a video call with bosses from cities across Europe who all wanted to ask him one thing: What’s it like when life starts returning to normal?
Columnist
The Quad’s waging a soft-power battle for Asian hearts and minds
The summit’s focus on vaccine diplomacy puts assisting the region ahead of resisting China. It’s intelligent politics.
Contributor
The housing bubble goes global
As central banks have slashed interest rates to historic lows, house prices in the advanced economies are rising at their fastest clip in more than a decade.
Columnist
Stirring speeches will not end sexual harassment
The promotion of a UBS executive offers a cautionary tale about the inability of the law to protect women at work.
Senior correspondent
Politics
Johnson’s pivot to deepen Australia-UK defence ties
A British foreign policy tilt towards the Indo-Pacific would boost countries concerned about China’s rise.
‘Clear and present danger’: Australia readies COVID support for PNG
The federal government is expected to announce an emergency assistance package for Papua New Guinea’s COVID-19 outbreak as early as Wednesday.
Australia won’t stop AstraZeneca jabs
Health experts say the Oxford University-developed COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective despite concern out of Europe about blood clots.
Crossbench warned of ‘massive’ job losses if it rejects IR reforms
Distressed businesses would collapse if the crossbench rejects the government’s reforms on casual entitlements, sparking another round of job losses, insolvency experts warn.
Victoria’s Liberal leader survives leadership spill
Victorian Liberal leader Michael O’Brien has soundly defeated a spill motion to challenge his leadership but remains vulnerable to another challenge.
SPONSORED
World
‘Opportunities’ open for Australia on US-China rivalry: Sinodinos
The ambassador to the US says Australians will feel the positive economic impact of Joe Biden’s $2.5 trillion pandemic relief package later this year.
AstraZeneca chaos wreaks havoc with Europe’s vaccination plans
The suspensions have created further chaos in inoculation rollouts even as new coronavirus variants continue to spread.
North Korea warns Biden not to cause a ‘stink’ as tensions rise
US military exercises with Seoul and a visit by top US officials to the region this week have prompted a warning to the Biden administration from North Korea.
UK ‘tilts’ to Indo-Pacific in post-Brexit strategy
The British Prime Minister plans to ‘tilt’ his country’s post-Brexit foreign policy towards the Indo-Pacific and make climate change his ‘No.1 international priority’, in a major strategy to be released late on Tuesday.
VW targets Tesla with European battery factories, charging stations
Volkswagen plans to build six battery cell plants in Europe as it accelerates efforts to overtake Tesla and speed up mass adoption of battery-powered cars.
Property
Goodman set to deliver Amazonian Christmas present
Amazon is one step closer to opening its first robotic fulfilment centre in Australia, with work on track to be completed in time for the Christmas shopping rush.
Hospital site sale doubles developer’s money in two years
Melbourne’s Hamton has sold a private hospital site it acquired two years ago from Healthscope to Centuria Healthcare for $20 million.
Mosman scores its highest sale of the year in $22m deal
Sydney’s trophy home market has kicked into top gear with a former Goldman Sachs investment banker trading two of the priciest homes on the lower north shore.
Brisbane rental vacancy level lowest since 2012
Policy and migration responses to the pandemic have turned around Brisbane’s rental market. But problems renters face haven’t gone away - they’ve just changed.
- Exclusive
- Commercial real estate
Dexus launches merger plan for AMP Capital fund
The merger proposal adds further pressure to AMP as it races to lock in a transformative deal with New York’s Ares Management for investment into the AMP Capital platform.
Wealth
- Exclusive
- Collectibles
Pandemic revs up Aussie demand for classic cars
UK auction platform Collecting Cars facilitated $1.5 million in rare automobile sales in Australia this year, including a world record for a 1975 Porsche 930 Turbo.
- Opinion
- Bonds
Why Warren Buffett is wrong on bonds
Portfolios with the cushion of investment grade bonds have had a smoother ride of the pandemic investing journey.
QSuper, Sunsuper deal creates $200b fund
QSuper and Sunsuper have signed a heads of agreement to merge and create Australia’s second largest superannuation fund.
Technology
The clash of China’s social media titans
Tencent is taking on ByteDance in the market and in the courts.
- Exclusive
- Cyber security
Aussie cyber chief warns business to improve its hygiene
Abigail Bradshaw, the head of the Australian Cyber Security Centre says some basic measures are not being taken as global hacking events take their toll locally.
The iPhone could be the answer to our environmental problems
Faster economic growth will do less harm to the environment than in the past, because digital innovations such as the iPhone are making the supply of goods and services less resource-intensive, says Productivity Commission chairman Michael Brennan.
Work & Careers
Corporations help storm regional Australia
Elders, Optus and Essential Energy have joined 12 other leading brands in committing to invest in job creation in regional areas.
- Exclusive
- Wage growth
The finance workers who could be in for a big pay rise
Accountants, finance managers and analysts could receive salary bumps of up to 10 per cent this year as companies slug it out to retain top talent in a hot market.
Life & Luxury
Hair apparent: Anabel Kingsley continues her father’s work
Decades after Philip Kingsley whipped up treatments for Audrey Hepburn, his haircare products still fly off the shelves.
Forget avo toast, you’ve got to try avocado pesto
Michelin-starred chef David Kinch’s combination sounds like a disaster. In fact, it’s brilliant, like an ominous blind date that leads to love.
Chanel’s necklace to befit an icon is not for sale
Created to celebrate 100 years of Chanel No. 5, the high-jewellery piece features a 55.55-carat diamond – just don’t bother asking how much it costs.
Two women up for Best Director in ‘most diverse’ Oscars ever
For the first time in Oscars history, two women are up for Best Director while Steven Yeun becomes the first ever Asian-American nominated for Best Actor.
Why middle-aged, career-driven men are taking up intermittent fasting
The 16:8 craze can boost brain power and works well for men of a certain age – as the likes of Boris Johnson can demonstrate.
