- Opinion
- Financial planners
Cut the regulatory knots for affordable financial advice
A fundamental restructure of costly, complex compliance requirements will improve access to financial planning without eroding consumer protections.
Big banks help Singaporeans hit Australian real estate Milestone
Global real estate investment group ESR has agreed a deal to acquire Blackstone’s Milestone Logistics.
Bitcoin plunges in biggest drop since February
Online reports attributed the plunge to speculation the US Treasury may crack down on money laundering that’s carried out through digital assets.
ASX on record watch as Wall St earnings switch gears
Netflix, Intel and Coca-Cola will lead a must-follow week for US corporate earnings and possibly the fresh enthusiasm required to reset the ASX 200’s 13-month-old record high.
- Opinion
- Cryptocurrencies
The good, bad and ugly of crypto
Crypto has entered into a manic phase. Not everything is bad, but a lot of what is happening now is downright ugly. Crypto can and will have to do better than this, says Grant Wilson.
Support for AstraZeneca vaccine plummets
A poll of Australian Financial Review readers found most believed the vaccine rollout was badly handled and had caused political damage to the Morrison government.
- Opinion
- The AFR View
Drop border spin, pull out vaccine stops
By lagging in the vaccine race, Australia risks being left behind and relinquishing its world-leading position in managing the pandemic.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
The untold story of how two university friends hatched the perfect crime only to be undone by the desire for more.
Companies
Accountants ‘fed up’ as banks shift pandemic risk
Accountants have slammed banks for an ‘explosion’ of requests to provide ‘capacity to repay’ letters as the financial services sector seeks to shift its credit risk amid the surging property market.
Citi sponsorships at risk as it exits retail banking: strategist
Citigroup’s range of partnerships across sport and food and wine may be up in the air as the global bank ends its 36-year run in retail banking.
‘No brainer’: Netflix should have to invest in Aussie content
Legislation requiring global streaming giants to reinvest revenue in Australian content would boost the production industry by $400 million.
BoQ seeks to smooth over capital-raising kerfuffle
The 159-branch lender partly points the finger at Australia Post as the root cause of the document distribution problems.
The start-ups eating multinationals for breakfast
The $1 billion breakfast foods market is dominated by multinationals, but start-ups are disrupting the market by taking the lead on innovation.
‘Shocker’ gas ruling cuts Origin guidance
A shock ruling on a gas price dispute has caused Origin to cut its guidance for full-year profit and looks set to revive worries for east coast manufacturers.
Citi’s credit card business shrinking ahead of sale
Citi Australia will encounter some difficulty finding a buyer for its retail division because its credit card book is shrinking as consumers chop up their plastic.
Markets
ASX on record watch as Wall St earnings switch gears
Netflix, Intel and Coca-Cola will lead a must-follow week for US corporate earnings and possibly the fresh enthusiasm required to reset the ASX 200’s 13-month-old record high.
China’s digital yuan won’t topple dollar: Bank of Japan official
The head of the BOJ’s payment systems department said the dollar’s advantage may even strengthen further if the US goes with digitalisation.
- Analysis
- Currencies
Biden raises stakes for the dollar with Russia sanctions
The US President’s decision to ban US financial institutions from buying new sovereign Russian debt offers the first insight into his attitude to sanctions, and prompted concern about their overuse.
Wall Street extends bullish run
Both the S&P 500 and Dow reset their record highs and the Nasdaq moved closer to one as optimism and bullishness remain high.
- Analysis
- Australian economy
Rebound may be less of a miracle than it appears
Fuelled by government and central bank cash, Australia’s economy has more than recovered and is now emphatically expanding, writes John Kehoe.
Opinion
Drop border spin, pull out vaccine stops
By lagging in the vaccine race, Australia risks being left behind and relinquishing its world-leading position in managing the pandemic.
Editorial
Vaccine turbulence forces new flight path
Monday’s meeting of national cabinet will be a political balancing act as the Morrison government tries to reassure Australians about the progress of the vaccine rollout while keeping the states onside.
Columnist
On the war on terror in Afghanistan, I don’t withdraw
By copying Donald Trump’s unilateral withdrawal policy, Joe Biden risks defeating the purpose behind Australia’s support for its major ally: freeing the Afghan people from the dystopian nightmare of the Taliban, writes Alexander Downer.
Columnist
Peacock, but no ghost
Unlike some of those who actually made it to The Lodge, Andrew Peacock was never haunted by his “failure” to achieve what once seemed to be his destiny.
Editorial
Vaccine passports a licence to discriminate? That’s the point
Just as we need a ordinary passport, we will require documented proof of having rolled up our sleeve for the jab so that international travel can get back to some form of normalcy.
Contributor
Cut the regulatory knots for simpler, affordable financial advice
A fundamental restructure of costly, complex compliance requirements will improve access to financial planning without eroding consumer protections.
Contributor
Politics
- Exclusive
- Coronavirus pandemic
Loophole means NZ could be Australians’ back door to global travel
The trans-Tasman travel bubble will allow Australians to get around a departure ban, as Scott Morrison says travel restrictions will not be eased for months.
GPs remain priority for vaccinations despite state push for mass hubs
National cabinet will try to get the vaccine rollout back on track after delays and updated medical safety advice.
Support for AstraZeneca vaccine plummets
A poll of Australian Financial Review readers found most believed the vaccine rollout was badly handled and had caused political damage to the Morrison government.
Space companies making one giant leap for Australia
What is being billed as Australia’s biggest spacecraft will be launched in March next year.
Andrew Peacock: the glamorous achiever
He may have been dubbed a show pony and the Colt from Kooyong, but Andrew Peacock proved over 40 years in public life that he was an original, and a highly effective minister and diplomat.
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World
- Opinion
- Royal family
Charles in charge: Prince is now the Queen’s closest counsellor
For the first time in 70 years, the Queen does not have the Duke of Edinburgh to rely on for counsel. The responsibility now falls to Prince Charles, who despite a sometimes difficult relationship with his father, is ready for the job.
Kate the key to Harry and William funeral detente
Princes William and Harry were seen together in public for the first time since the Duke of Sussex and his wife’s explosive tell-all interview to Oprah Winfrey.
US, China agreement sets scene for Biden climate summit
China and the United States put aside tensions on a raft of other issues to strike an agreement to address climate change “with the seriousness and urgency it demands”.
China accuses Biden, Suga of meddling after joint criticism
The US President and Japanese Prime Minister sharply criticised Beijing on issues including aggression against Taiwan after talks at the White House.
Queen cuts a lonely figure as Prince Philip laid to rest
The Duke of Edinburgh got the discreet and traditional funeral he wanted, where glimpses of his life and personality were offered obliquely not ostentatiously.
Property
Primewest boosts rural fund with $40m in deals as IPO beckons
Primewest has said it is looking to grow the fund’s portfolio to around $350 million before floating on the ASX.
SA almond farm on offer as ag investors go nuts
Horticultural assets, including orchards and nut farms, have been at the forefront of a wave of institutional investment into agricultural property over the past year.
HomeBuilder extension to unleash boom in every corner of the country
Unlike previous periods when some regions have been strong and others weak, Australian home-building faces an unusual time of boom conditions everywhere.
- Opinion
- Property market
Unpacking the link between rates, rents and house prices
New research using the RBA’s internal housing model confirms the boom will be long and strong.
March US home construction jumps to fastest pace since 2006
Builders began construction on new homes and apartments at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.74 million units in March, the Commerce Department reported.
Wealth
Investors defy tougher lending conditions to bid in hot market
Agents claim investors are surging back despite higher borrowing rates and even quarantine.
Buy, hold, sell: Six ETFs for your portfolio
From a fund that gives exposure to Australia’s biggest companies to a huge growth e-sports thematic.
Can I use equity in SMSF property to buy more?
While individual investors can borrow against real estate assets to create a portfolio, this doesn’t work when it comes to DIY super funds.
Technology
Google illegally tracked Aussie phone users
Google illegally misled Australian phone users when it kept collecting location data after users thought they had turned off location tracking, the Federal Court has found.
Michael Dell’s fortune soars on spinoff optimism
Shares in Dell Technologies surged to a record high, bolstered by its decision to spin off its sake in VMware and extending the life in Michael Dell’s wealth too.
Coinbase spotlights Australia’s blockchain brain drain
Regulatory uncertainty around digital assets is prompting Australian crypto entrepreneurs to move abroad and a Senate committee is searching for a policy fix.
Work & Careers
- Exclusive
- Governance
Software company founder declares war on ‘toxic’ proxy firms
TechnologyOne founder and chairman Adrian Di Marco says influential proxy firms that advise shareholders on how to vote are an unelected and unaccountable scourge on corporate Australia.
Court rules junior lawyer underpaid despite $500,000 salary
A junior lawyer who earned over $500,000 a year has successfully sued his former firm for underpaying him after signing a lucrative employment agreement that promised him 40-50 per cent of his clients’ fees.
Life & Luxury
Magic Millions, money laundering and a $4b crypto scam
The FBI is investigating the biggest investor in Australian horseracing over a scam that could have cost Australians $770 million, according to a former executive.
Mank: The drunken jester behind ‘the greatest movie ever made’
With this Oscar nominee, director David Fincher has made a glorious fable of Hollywood.
Lego heist thieves chase riches in bricks
There is serious money to be made from selling collectible editions of the Danish play things, and toy stores offer easy pickings for organised crime gangs.
Baroque heights for Brandenburg
The Australian Brandenburg Orchestra’s latest program explores the combination of very high male and female voices that was particularly favoured in the Baroque period.
A Verry Elleegant successor to Winx
It’s the best horse in the world v the best in Australia – and trainer Chris Waller like the chances of his local champ.
