Seven Group makes opportunistic $8b bid for Boral
Kerry Stokes’ Seven Group Holdings has made a bold bid to move up Boral Ltd’s share register.
Iron ore fuels ASX record
It took 14 months for the S&P/ASX 200 Index to reclaim its record high, at 7172.8 points, and the fact it happened on budget eve with a record iron ore price is no accident.
- Analysis
- Federal budget
Australia’s amazing disappearing infrastructure spend
The government blames laggard states, bottlenecks, regulatory hurdles and the chaos of COVID-19 for punching holes in its infrastructure spending plans.
McCann the ‘perfect choice’ for Crown
The casino operator has appointed a cleanskin CEO, untarred by the gambling industry who, crucially, has the trust of key shareholder James Packer.
- Analysis
- Trucking
Holgate’s surprise new role a high-stakes career move
Fixing Toll’s dysfunctional culture in a highly competitive industry is going to be a challenge for the celebrity CEO, ex-managers say.
- Exclusive
- Australia's China challenge
Navy goes full speed ahead on South China Sea transits
Amid tensions with China, Australian warships are stepping up their presence in the contested waters.
- Live
- Need to Know
Major train delays in Sydney as police operation under way
Specialist police have been called in after a man ran onto tracks in Sydney; The Federal Court has rejected a bid to overturn the ban on travel from India. Follow the latest here.
Companies
Business conditions ‘simply stunning’ as confidence hits all-time high
A surge in retail sales, stronger than expected employment figures and job ads in March and April, and a record $200 iron ore price, are driving record conditions.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Packer and Crown can squeeze more out of suitors
Just three months ago, Crown was being pilloried for its governance and risk failings. Now it is the subject of a bidding war that’s far from over.
WA gaming regulator says media forced out top casino officer
A royal commission in WA has been told the state’s chief casino officer only stood down because of media attention on his friendship and fishing trips with staff at Crown Perth.
- Analysis
- Federal budget
Big bank levy jumped $50m at height of COVID-19 crisis
One unusual outcome of the COVID-19 panic was that the way it triggered a jump in the bank levy paid by the big four banks and Macquarie, writes Michael Roddan.
- Exclusive
- IPO
Pubs float off but $200m on the bar for acquisitions
An IPO which valued Australian Venue Co at $930 million is temporarily on ice, but the group is full tilt on acquisitions.
APA, Woodside drop WA hydrogen project
A green hydrogen project that APA Group and Woodside wanted to build in Western Australia has been put on the back burner after it failed to win government funding.
Greensill Capital administrators flag insurance claims
Greensill Capital’s British administrators have singled out insurance claims as “a significant area of recovery” for the collapsed supply chain group’s investors.
Markets
- Opinion
- Foreign investment
Australia joined the ranks of the capital exporters last year
Australia turned into a net lender of capital last year, as the Reserve Bank provided banks with ample cheap funding at a time when consumers were squirrelling away savings.
Pengana selects new external managers after stock-pickers exit
The Sydney-based fund manager has partnered with asset managers in Connecticut and New Jersey to fill the void created by two senior staff exits in March.
ASX closes at record high as miners rally
The ASX has closed at a record high as rising commodity prices combined with a casino bidding war to push the market 1.3 per cent higher on Monday.
Pendal bets on value trade with $413m buy
Pendal Group has agreed to acquire a Virginia-based asset manager in a deal that doubles its US funds under management and adds value portfolios at a moment of outperformance for the investing style.
ASX hits new record high; BHP, Rio, Fortescue soar
The Australian sharemarket has closed at a new record high; Crown confirms $12b merger offer from Star, appoints new CEO, confirms improved Blackstone bid; Woolworths to demerge Endeavour Group into ASX-listed company; A2 warns it won’t meet guidance; retail sales rise 1.3pc in March. Follow the latest here.
Opinion
Lines of dispute with China are getting sharper
Josh Frydenberg’s big-spending budget and a booming domestic economy obscure the risks and reality of the fractured relationship with Australia’s biggest trading partner.
Columnist
How Australia’s iron ore export ban was beaten
We have three visionaries to thank for mineral resources riches that are pouring into the federal budget coffers.
Contributor
Time to scrap middle-class welfare
Too much budget funding goes to people who are not poor and who do not need government help.
Columnist
All (tech) talk, no walk at budget time
At the heart of Coalition innovation policy is a yawning absence of enduring commitment to the vital role these sectors will play in Australia’s future.
Contributor
Tinkering with super won’t help older left-behind women
Women over 55 are the fastest growing cohort of homeless, unable to make up lost years of super saving. This needs a more direct welfare fix.
Contributor
Childcare should be about economics, not social engineering
Boosting productivity is the most useful goal for childcare subsidies. That means changing the way that we apply the funding.
Contributor
Politics
Bid to overturn Morrison government’s India travel ban fails
An urgent challenge in the Federal Court sought to overturn a block on Australian citizens returning home.
‘Sense of urgency’: NSW opens mass vaccination hub
NSW residents aged 40 to 49 will receive unused vaccine doses in a matter of weeks as the state opens a mass vaccination hub in Sydney.
Rapid COVID-19 testing dropped at Howard Springs quarantine station
The decision was sparked by a change in policy ordered by the Northern Territory’s chief health officer.
Aged care ‘needs more than a funding fix’
Advocates say a mooted $18 billion injection for the aged care sector needs to be accompanied by serious systemic reform or risks being squandered.
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
Budget breaks to help retirees boost super savings
A scheme enabling downsizers to boost their superannuation will be extended to 60-year-olds and above, while the work test for top-ups will be scrapped.
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World
Indonesia drops its guard in bid to lure foreign investors
President Joko Widodo has high hopes for a new sovereign wealth fund, but the choice of projects may deter some investors.
India’s COVID-19 cases dip from peak, but calls for shutdown mount
Many states have imposed strict lockdowns over the past month while others have placed curbs on movement and shut cinemas, restaurants, pubs and shopping malls.
US declares state of emergency to keep fuel flowing after cyber attack
The move lifted various limits on the transport of fuels by road to ease the fallout from the continuing closure of the Colonial pipeline.
Gates divorce talks began in 2019 on Epstein link, WSJ says
Melinda Gates’ unease about Bill Gates’ ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein dates back to at least 2013, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The fight to flip ‘the eyes and ears’ of Donald Trump
Trump Organisation CFO Allen Weisselberg holds the key to unlocking the complex finances of the former president’s empire.
Property
Goodman heads for $41b valuation as pipeline swells
Analysts at Jefferies and Citi expect Goodman shares to rise above $22 as the industrial giant delivers massive sheds for Amazon and others.
HPI closes in on $1b of pub real estate after Sunshine Coast deal
With the acquisition of the Surfair Beach Hotel from the Scanlon family, HPI owns about $900 million of assets.
Mortgage stress rising as JobKeeper ends
The number of households struggling with cash flow rose to 1.52 million in April, one month after the wage subsidy ended.
Property investors are back: NAB
Loan applications from property investors are definitely on the rise but market conditions are a long way from requiring ‘macroprudential’ intervention from regulators, NAB says.
Trader buys himself $13m+ pad for his 36th birthday
Sources suggest he paid a little more than what the property passed in for at auction. Elsewhere, a bank boss bought himself new digs in line with his new job.
Wealth
- Analysis
- Philanthropy
How billionaire women are reshaping philanthropy
The new generation is wresting female philanthropy away from its associations with pearl-clad socialites and gala dinners, heralding demographic and strategic shifts to which charities are scrambling to respond.
- Opinion
- Banking products
Why savers are turning their backs on term deposits
Australian savers, clearly unimpressed by the paltry returns being offered on term deposits, are parking more of their money in at-call deposits and offset accounts.
- Opinion
- Investing
Why you need to work out whether you’re a gambler or an investor
Trading based on short-term market movements shares more characteristics with sports betting than it does with investing – including the likelihood of loss.
Technology
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
VC fund proves you can profit from impact investing
Impact Investment Group has spun out its venture capital fund, Giant Leap, into its own entity, having proved returns can be generated from companies that benefit society.
How a small ISP used video game tactics in $8m spectrum tilt
Pentanet secured crucial mobile bandwidth in Perth last month, a coup that will boost its ability to compete with major players – and it was down to Civilization VI tactics.
- Exclusive
- Funding
E-commerce tech firm banks $15m funding round
Thirteen-year-old Australian retail tech business Comestri has banked $15 million in funding from Moelis after a bumper year on the back of COVID-19.
Work & Careers
Workers paid on ‘including super’ basis may get a shock on July 1
Almost two-thirds of companies with a ‘total package’ approach plan to offset at least some of the cost of higher super contributions by reducing employees’ take-home pay.
Balloon walls, robots: Google’s office of the future
The company that once redefined how an employer treats its workers is now trying to redefine the office itself.
Life & Luxury
Nicholas Moore, Judith Neilson join National Gallery board
The former Macquarie chief and leading philanthropist will join the Ryan Stokes-led council overseeing the prestigious Canberra institution.
Wash your rice to get rid of microplastic, experts say
Australians may consume about 1 gram of plastic per person annually with their rice, Queensland University researchers have found.
For this executive coach, a 24-hour run is the perfect length
Slogging hundreds of kilometres may not sound like relaxation, but Kay Bretz is hooked on the sense of freedom and fulfilment, not to mention the endorphins.
Three compelling reasons to get travelling around Australasia
You sometimes need a little push to encourage you to pack your bags, whether it be in the form of a new gallery, a festival or even a slogan.
How lockdown turned author Ian Rankin into a jigsaw fiend
For someone whose day job is crafting intricate plots full of interlocking clues, puzzles seem to be a natural pastime.
