- Opinion
- Household debt
Will our growing wealth make us work shy?
As the NSW and Victorian economies reopen, will Australian workers follow the lead of their US counterparts and drag their feet when it comes to getting back to work, asks Jacqueline Maley.
PM pressures Nats on climate deal
Scot Morrison has added national security to the list of reasons why Australia must adopt a binding target of net zero emissions by 2050.
M&A boom to smash records
Cheap money and a fear of missing out are driving a deal frenzy in Australia. “Every single ASX listed company is a target,” said one banker.
- Opinion
- Berejiklian inquiry
A jagged tear in the sterling reputation of ‘Saint Gladys’
Former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian will be interrogated by the ICAC. It’s another example of the blurred line between the personal and public interest in politics, writes Jennifer Hewett.
Investors rush to hot reopening stocks as lockdowns end
Companies that suffered through the pandemic have become popular sharemarket trades as Sydney and Melbourne exit lockdowns.
Berejiklian didn’t suspect former boyfriend
The former NSW premier told ICAC she didn’t suspect Daryl Maguire of corruption, as the watchdog heard of input from Jobs Minister Stuart Ayres.
Palaszczuk opens Qld border for Christmas
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has urged Queenslanders to get vaccinated ahead of them being reunited with families and friends for Christmas.
The biggest stories in business, markets and politics, and why they matter, in your inbox at 8pm.
Companies
The Star $1b stock drop sparks two shareholder class actions
The $3.5 billion gambling company is under investigation by law firms Slater and Gordon and Maurice Blackburn for allegedly failing to adequately disclose money-laundering and terrorism-financing risks to the market.
Hub24 to triple customer base with Class deal
Hub24 managing director Andrew Alcock said the two companies were a “neat fit”, performing similar functions in different parts of the market.
Vulcan steels itself for pent-up demand as lockdowns end
Old-fashioned cold calling by salespeople has helped Vulcan expand its customer base to above 7000 in two years.
Zip doubles first quarter sales, analysts back rebranding
The value of goods being purchased on Zip is rising but customer growth rates have dropped off, as its new brand appears on digital billboards in Times Square.
CBA and BlackRock ink $15b MySuper deal
Colonial First State has handed the world’s largest asset manager a $15 billion mandate to help run investments across its two default superannuation funds.
Endeavour Group’s uphill battle on ESG
Australia’s largest operator of poker machines, and the biggest liquor retailer, says it recognises that some investors will never consider buying its shares.
BHP breakthrough extends iron ore mine life
A BHP mine that was supposed to stop producing iron ore this year could run for years more after a breakthrough that better sorts the wheat from the chaff.
Companies in the News
Search companies
View stories and data from an ASX listed company
Markets
Deals frenzy lifts ASX to 0.3pc gain
The local market benefited from a string of corporate M&A activity, while rallying base metal prices supported miners.
ASX rises; Senex jumps 15pc on Posco bid
NZ CPI rises 4.9pc in Q3; Aussie bond yields soar; China GDP rises 4.9pc in Q3; Aristocrat makes $3.9b Playtech bid; HomeCo Daily Needs, Aventus agree to merger. Follow the latest here.
Pressure mounts on China to boost stimulus as rebound loses steam
The pressure on Chinese authorities to increase stimulus has intensified as the economy reported slower than expected growth, economists said.
NZ inflation alarm fires up rate hike bets
New Zealand’s CPI soared to its highest level in more than a decade, and what’s happening across the Tasman puts the RBA’s forward guidance further in doubt.
Inflationary storm heats up, Chinese growth to slow
NZ’s CPI takes its annual growth rate past 4 per cent, just as Chinese GDP decelerates; December Brent futures hit $US85.10 intraday, a fresh three-year high.
Opinion
Beware, workers are about to pivot with their feet
The workplace is going through a Great Realignment because of the pandemic, which has made many employees rethink what their jobs mean to them.
Contributor
When markets regulate the politicians
Hypocritical Nationals holdouts are exposing regional Australia to risk and robbing it of opportunity in the green industries that are coming.
Columnist
Will our growing wealth make us work shy?
As the NSW and Victorian economies reopen, will Australian workers follow the lead of their US counterparts and drag their feet when it comes to getting back to work?
Columnist
Supply chain lessons from Long Beach
One of the best things that we could do to avoid port pile-ups in the future is to ensure that no more than 25 per cent of any crucial supply be sourced from one place, or come into one port.
Contributor
Victoria, converted to vaccines, moves beyond lockdown
Victoria’s vaccinated reopening should prompt vaccine lagging COVID-free states to figure out their own reopening timetable for inevitably accepting the entry of the virus.
Editorial
Daniel Andrews takes a political exit route
Daniel Andrews says Victoria and NSW are now “closely aligned” and will increasingly operate as one zone while other states pursue their own divergent COVID-free paths.
Columnist
Politics
Vaccine rush leading to reduced sickness as Australia reopens
The rapid and widespread uptake of vaccines gives experts optimism that the health impact of reopening state and territory economies and borders will be far lower than predicted just a month ago.
Juukan Gorge inquiry urges Canberra to oversee Indigenous heritage
An inquiry into Rio Tinto’s destruction of cultural heritage at Juukan Gorge has recommended more federal oversight.
Berejiklian was pushing for funding bid, ICAC hears
Queensland to allow quarantine-free travel for fully vaccinated Australians from December 17; A senior bureaucrat says the funding bid at the centre of the ICAC hearings was rushed; Auckland lockdown extended. How today unfolded.
Soaring vaccinations promise ‘bright summer’: Frydenberg
NAB CEO Ross McEwan says big spending in the first week out of the NSW lockdown signals a strong recovery to come.
The quest for super immunity to the pandemic has started
In some people, being both infected with the virus and later injected with a vaccine against it provides a level of resistance that makes them almost super immune to the virus.
SPONSORED
World
Auckland lockdown extended for at least two weeks
PM Jacinda Ardern said a vaccination target would provide the city, which has already been locked down for two months, a pathway out of restrictions.
- Opinion
- GDP
Honeymoon is over for China’s post-pandemic recovery
Growth in China’s industrial and real estate sectors is cooling, meaning long-term pain for Australia’s most valuable exports.
American workers who didn’t quit are now going on strike
Many of those who didn’t join The Great Resignation are now joining picket lines, as widespread work stoppages reflect growing frustrations among the labour force.
Japan’s Kishida woos voters with Abenomics critique
Borrowing from the opposition’s policy playbook is a tactic the long-ruling LDP has often used with success.
China yields jump as easing bets fade
The yield on China’s 10-year bond rose as high as 3.02 per cent, crossing the 3 per cent level for the first time since early July.
Property
Worst is over for Melbourne and Sydney apartment landlords
Apartments in CBDs suffered large declines in rents during the pandemic, but are poised to see strong rental growth as the lockdowns end and the border reopens.
Social housing in NSW gets a $183m funding boost
The NSW social housing sector has received extra funding to accelerate development of more than 1400 new homes and help kick-start the state’s construction industry.
The CEO of Optus has bought a $15m Sydney landmark
Kelly Bayer Rosmarin and her husband have made a handsome trade-up in their Vaucluse real estate by purchasing a Spanish mission-style residence.
House prices ‘moving before buyers’ eyes’
Melbourne buyers agent David Morrell says his clients are undertaking just one inspection and then making an offer to avoid missing out as prices surge.
Investor slams Coalition ‘ideology’ against build to rent
‘All the heavy lifting on this housing solution has been done by the states and the feds have done absolutely nothing,’ the world’s biggest BTR investor says.
Wealth
Tax shortcut for work-from-home claims extended
Rules allowing taxpayers to speed up their annual tax return have been extended to June 2022.
- Podcast
- How I Made It
Listen now: How to go from EY to $50m
Julie-anne Sprague talks to Jane Lu, 35, the fast fashion retailer who quit her job at EY during the depths of the 2010 financial crisis; lied to her mother and is now worth around $50 million. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.
- Opinion
- Inheritance
Can you disinherit your child?
What happens when broken family relationships are played out by parents leaving their offspring out of the will?
Technology
- Exclusive
- Company mergers
The little four about to eat the big four’s lunch
Sekuro will launch this week after four separate firms agreed to merge without a cent changing hands, to compete with Big Four consulting firms for lucrative cyber security work.
Facebook may identify trolls in defamation cases
Facebook could reveal the identity of people who post defamatory material on its platform if asked by someone suing for defamation or by a court.
DoorDash in push for bigger bite of food delivery market
American juggernaut delivery service DoorDash has launched its first local advertising campaign as it seeks to topple the local dominance of Menulog and Uber Eats.
Work & Careers
- Exclusive
- Meet the CEO
How a McKinsey partner plans to reinvent Oroton
The mid-luxury retailer is seeking to re-cement its place in the fashion world after a tremulous few years.
Cbus under fire over proposal to cut wages to pay for super
The industry super sector has consistently argued that increases in the superannuation guarantee do not lower wages growth.
Life & Luxury
Why marine ingredients are so hot in skincare
The ocean takes up most of our world, so it stands to reason it would be a rich source of natural wonders. The bonus? They can do wonders for your skin, too.
- Exclusive
- Life after Lockdown
Start-up helps bands score post-lockdown gigs
Muso, a software platform that helps musicians find gigs and venues find artists to put on shows, is banking on a post-lockdown boom after raising capital.
Seven and Nine fight over ratings crown
Seven has reclaimed the ratings crown after losing it to rival Nine in 2019, as the third commercial free-to-air player ViacomCBS-owned Network 10 prepares to present its case to advertisers on Wednesday.
Gunfire Lullabies charts a journey from diplomat to novelist
Author Nore Hoogstad was posted to Indonesia at a dramatic moment in its history. Here she explains why she can’t write about her experiences in a memoir.
- Opinion
- Performing arts
Is Adele’s Hollywood makeover the greatest ever?
With two Vogue covers, a property empire and a new album, the singer has had a radical A-list reinvention.
