Jobless rate falls to 5.6pc as JobKeeper ends
More than 70,000 jobs were added in March as JobKeeper came to an end - far in excess of what economists were forecasting. A record participation rate was reached.
- Live
- Markets Live
ASX rallies from opening loss; jobless rate drops to 5.6pc
The Australian sharemarket has rallied after falling at the open; oil prices surge to highest level in a month as US demand picks up; Boral exploring options for fly ash business; Qantas ups Q4 domestic capacity estimate to more than 90pc. Follow the latest here.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Coinbase may be too profitable for its own good
Coinbase’s sharemarket debut, which is thought to have netted Westpac-backed Reinventure $500 million, is a big moment in many ways. But investors need to be aware its fat profit margins will make it a target.
- Live
- Need to Know
CBA expects house price growth to slow
Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn has told a parliamentary committee the rapid growth in house prices over recent months won’t continue; Rich Lister calls on Holgate supporters to ‘rise up’ against Prime Minister. Follow updates here.
Qantas says all domestic staff are back at work
Qantas has increased its domestic capacity target to 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and announced that all domestic Qantas and Jetstar staff are back at work.
Whitehaven shares slump 14pc on Narrabri downgrades
Investors responded savagely to new geology issues at Narrabri which forced a sales downgrade and stopped Whitehaven from fully enjoying the coal price rally
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
BoQ’s mortgage focus is working
George Frazis timed his move to Bank of Queensland perfectly. The stock has re-rated significantly since he joined from Westpac in June 2019 and has just announced its third successive increase in half year earnings.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
THE SURE THING PODCAST
- Opinion
- The Sure Thing
Let’s be ‘smarter’ not ‘harder’ on white collar crime
It is a myth that judges go easy on white collar offenders, and long jail sentences are not always the answer for white collar crime, argues Clinton Free, who featured in The Sure Thing podcast.
- Exclusive
- The Sure Thing
‘I probably felt a tinge of guilt’: Insider trader given second chance
Christopher Hill has been offered a role by the foreign exchange broker who reported him to authorities thanks to his honesty during The Sure Thing podcast.
Listen now: The Sure Thing episode 7
A potential new role for Christopher Hill is discussed during a bonus episode of podcast.
Bonus episode
Join us on April 12 for episode 7 when one of the players comes forward with an offer Chris will find hard to refuse.
Sure Thing ‘drip feed’ wasn’t to create buzz
It’s not just two blokes on the couch. The Financial Review’s The Sure Thing has taken a team of people at least three weeks to produce each episode.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
Companies
Whitehaven shares slump 14pc on Narrabri downgrades
Investors responded savagely to new geology issues at Narrabri which forced a sales downgrade and stopped Whitehaven from fully enjoying the coal price rally
Half-price flights drive sales records at Virgin: Hrdlicka
The relaunched airline has taken 10 new Boeing 737-800 aircraft and is returning 220 staff to work as it plots its recovery back from voluntary administration.
Inside story: How the ASIC soap opera forced Frydenberg to act
The Treasurer is now determined to make blue-chip appointments to draw a line under the soap opera that has engulfed the corporate watchdog during the James Shipton era.
Transurban traffic boosted by new toll roads
A quarterly rise in group traffic reflects the opening of new tollroads in Sydney, with tolled traffic in most cities lower than before the COVID-19 virus hit.
How a 10-day ‘firestorm’ blew up Holgate’s career
The crisis at the top of Australia Post remains a series of claims and counter claims, sparked by $20,000 worth of watches.
Ampol refinery claws back to break even as review continues
The elimination of heavy losses at the Lytton oil refinery in the first quarter offers some hope that Ampol may decide to keep the plant running.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Entrepreneurs flock to telco sector
Entrepreneurs who emerged from the deregulated telco sector are a tribute to competition, creativity, healthy capital markets and two slow-moving incumbents.
Markets
Coinbase soars near $150b valuation in landmark listing
Although its shares ended lower on the day, the exchange’s initial public offering and valuation high are a watershed for the cryptocurrency industry.
- Analysis
- Investing
Investors brace for ‘major shift’ as momentum and value collide
Since November’s coronavirus vaccine breakthroughs, value stocks have benefited from their high sensitivity to economic cycles. Now, they are climbing fast and consistently enough to start classifying as momentum stocks as well.
Goldman, JPMorgan traders show the Reddit crowd how it’s done
Goldman earned more from trading in the first three months of the year than it had in any quarter in the past decade, while JPMorgan saw such revenue climb 25 per cent.
What happened in markets overnight
Australian shares are poised to fall, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq lower as US earnings season kicks off in style. Oil leaps on IEA’s optimism.
Oil surges to highest in a month with US demand picking up
Futures rose 4.9 per cent in New York, the most since late March, after trading in a $US5 range for weeks.
Opinion
Holgate saga an embarrassment for Australia’s political class
The blame for the massive overreaction that cost Australia Post its high-achieving chief executive needs to be sheeted home to the hyper-political culture in Canberra.
Editorial
Holgate the latest outsider spat out by public service politics
The former Australia Post chief joins Ahmed Fahour as another to have apparently fallen foul of prime ministerial disapproval.
Government editor
Economic success pips political dividend
Scott Morrison is reaching out to a booming Western Australia in his first trip across the Nullarbor in over 18 months. But economic success doesn’t translate neatly into political returns.
Columnist
Tax cuts can help get the RBA out of its zero rates trap
Cutting income taxes to boost wages and spending could be the best use of the government’s fiscal policy tools right now.
Economics editor
PM wins war, but risks the peace
The Morrison government’s failures on vaccines, jobs and wages leave it vulnerable to voters who sense a broken bargain.
Contributor
Has Beijing fired the first shot in the e-currency wars?
China’s decision to push ahead with a national digital currency is partly motivated by domestic factors, but the Biden administration is keeping a wary eye on the threat it poses to US dollar dominance.
Columnist
Politics
Big business 30pc tax rate ‘hurts growth’
It should be aligned with the 25 per cent levied on smaller companies to remove a barrier for businesses to grow, the OECD recommends.
PM embraces mass vaccination hubs to help fix rollout
Scott Morrison has indicated the establishment of such centres with the aim of inoculating the entire population by the end of the year.
PM denies his treatment of Christine Holgate was sexist
Scott Morrison says he regrets the hurt felt by the former Australia Post boss but will not apologise for what he calls a “very strong response” to an issue unrelated to gender.
- Exclusive
- Industrial relations
Business push for ‘emergency’ IR flexibilities to stay in awards
Small business is calling for the government to maintain workplace flexibilities and a wage subsidy program that can be turned on for future emergencies.
JobKeeper concerns fade as housing engine fires up
The booming property market is driving huge employment gains in the real estate sector, which had been a big user of JobKeeper.
SPONSORED
World
Inside the female billionaires’ club
A new rich list shows a marked increase in the ratio of women – but dig beneath the numbers and the same old patterns emerge.
- Analysis
- GDP
How to make sense of China’s ‘record-breaking’ GDP report
China is on Friday expected to report the highest quarterly economic growth ever since it began releasing such data 30 years ago. Investors need to look beyond that number to assess the true state of the economy’s post-pandemic recovery.
Billion-dollar fraudster Bernie Madoff dies in prison
For years, the New York financier convinced his clients they were earning billions in investments. Instead, he stole $16.8 billion to fund his own lavish lifestyle.
Political fallout from Greensill collapse widens in the UK
The scandal over David Cameron’s lobbying for Lex Greensill is now engulfing the broader relationship between bureaucrats and business.
China’s cover-up aided virus spread, Fauci tells Australian audience
The gagging, obfuscation and lack of early transparency on the part of Chinese officials was very unfortunate, the chief medical adviser to the US President says.
Property
‘RBA house price model’ predicts 25pc rise by 2023
Using similar analysis to the RBA, Coolabah Capital is forecasting 25 per cent growth in house prices over the next three years.
Gary Singer scores discount on $27m Toorak mansion
The art auctioneer, former Melbourne deputy lord mayor and one-time real estate boss is thought to have paid about $22 million for the grandly restored home.
Four bidders left in race for Blackstone portfolio
The bids have come in at about a 4 per cent investment yield – considered a sharp yield that points to strong pricing for the keenly sought assets.
Housing affordability jumps to top of property industry concerns
State governments’ ability to meet surging demand for new housing was the most critical issue, a property industry survey shows.
Apartments in lifestyle locations rise higher despite sector gloom
Despite the weakness in the broader apartment sector, 14 suburbs recorded more than 20 percent growth in unit values in the past 12 months.
Wealth
- Opinion
- Flat Chat
Bungled holiday let rules put on hold
When NSW Planning tried to finish its code of conduct, it was the start of a whole new set of problems.
- Opinion
- Sharemarket
Strong turnaround potential in Micro Focus
A third of the way into a three-year turnaround strategy, the British-listed software provider is wooing back investors.
- Opinion
- Investing
Supply chain threats from climate change
The Suez Canal blockage is a warning to investors that changing weather conditions are making global shipping disruptions much more common.
Technology
How the FBI tapped an Australian firm to unlock a terrorist’s iPhone
Publicity-shy Azimuth Security came to Apple’s rescue by ending a case that could have led to a court-ordered back door to the iPhone.
Even Tesla can’t overcome Australian hostility to electric cars
Down Under, tractors outsell electric vehicles two to one, while in the UK and European Union, EV sales have soared to more than 10 per cent of the market.
Apple to hold first product unveiling of the year on April 20
The technology giant dubbed the event ‘Spring Loaded’ in a media invitation after its devices’ personal assistant, Siri, confirmed the event to those who asked.
Work & Careers
Meet the CEO who has a thing about croissants
Australian Ballet CEO Libby Christie stops for 10 minutes at Lune Cafe, in Melbourne, for a flat white and a croissant, on her way to work.
Talent RISE appoints new Australian CEO
Ex-Ipsos executive to lead the charity arm of recruitment firm Talent and ad tech company Cartelux hires a new CFO.
Life & Luxury
Old guard leads as art market gets set for $16m week
Four million-dollar-plus paintings by blue-chip Australian artists headline a big week for a hot art market, with a 25-carat sparkler aiming for seven figures too.
Hello New Zealand: Travel horizons are finally expanding
New exhibitions, a rebranded hotel and refreshed menus are on the table as your travel fortunes soar.
- Opinion
- Motoring
Why the new S4 sedan is Audi’s Goldilocks model
The warmed-up version of the car is a pleasing midpoint between the everyday iteration and the very expensive RS machines.
Replace your stove with induction to save energy and impress guests
Such cooking units transfer energy to the bottom of magnetic pots and pans, heating them up. Here’s what you need to know before buying one.
Matsuyama first man from Japan to win golf major
Matsuyama held on after knocking one in the water at the 15th, shooting a 1-over 73 to win the Masters by one stroke.
