Coalition shields Porter from scrutiny over secret trust
Labor moved to refer the former attorney-general to a powerful parliamentary committee over secret donations that helped pay his legal fees, but the Coalition used its numbers to block the motion.
Rio Tinto vows 50pc carbon cut
China inspired the miner’s radical plan to decarbonise that will bring renewable power to its Australian iron ore mines and aluminium smelters.
Senate report proposes radical plan to regulate crypto economy
Treasury will oversee new cryptocurrency market licences and corporations law changes to allow “decentralised autonomous organisations” under an ambitious new model proposed in a bipartisan Senate report.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Crypto reform will unleash opportunities
A parliamentary report says Australia’s crypto-related businesses need official licensing and oversight to gain credibility with banks and to protect consumers.
- Exclusive
- Online trading
Banks eye $1.8trn micro-investing market
Retail banks are preparing imminent forays into micro- and automated-investing as they rally to make up ground on Commonwealth Bank’s popular CommSec Pocket app.
Pac and Mac $2.2b mega-deal is boost for major malls
AMP, Cbus and UniSuper’s record-breaking deal to buy into Pacific Fair and the Macquarie Centre sets a clear pricing benchmark for major malls.
House price growth eases in outer suburbs
The outer fringe suburbs, where new housing developments are fast coming up, are losing the most growth momentum.
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smart investor
Investors and renters return to cities as pandemic fears ease
Inner-city supply is tightening and rental prices are beginning to increase.
- Opinion
- Investing
Do female investors have a perfectionist problem?
Money coaches say women have less invested than men because they are afraid of not getting it absolutely right.
- Opinion
- Property investment
How much to spend on your renovation
There’s a fine line between adding value and overcapitalising – here’s how to work it out.
- Opinion
- Aged care
How to find the best aged care home
Don’t leave it to chance but check how the provider rates on quality and safety. Price alone is not the best indicator.
- 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?
Companies
Overwhelming support for fining dodgy finance executives
Consumer advocate group Choice wants the government to impose $1 million penalties on financial executives who break the law.
Spark’s independent expert signs off on ‘premium’ takeover bid
The bid is 2¢ above the upper range of the independent expert’s valuation of the company.
Dan Murphy’s lockdown verdict is in
Customers of Dan Murphy’s and BWS liquor have shifted online in lockdowns, and hotel-goers are ordering expensive cocktails.
Bechtel, PwC on board to deliver Sun Cable project
The Sun Cable solar power export project has announced a heavyweight team of global technical and advisory experts to bring the $30 billion-plus electricity cable project to Singapore to life.
Supercheap Auto and Rebel chains crimped by lockdowns
CEO Anthony Heraghty expects a strong rebound over summer, and says Click and Collect has overtaken pure online transactions.
A2 Milk shares rally after Citi keeps ‘buy’ call
Rival Danone SA showed growth in its China baby formula business channels in the September quarter, which bodes well for a2 Milk.
BHP tops Forrest in Canadian nickel battle
BHP has wasted no time in reclaiming pole position in the bidding war for Canadian nickel explorer Noront Resources.
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Markets
Shares rally 0.5pc, led by Worley’s upgrade to net zero winner
Australian shares closed higher on Wednesday, buoyed by a 7.5 per cent jump in Worley after it secured a key contract, and by a positive Kogan trading update.
ASX adds 0.5pc; Codan, REA, Kogan, A2 Milk climb
The Australian sharemarket added 38.8 points, or 0.5 per cent to 7413.7 on Wednesday. Recap the day’s news here.
Fundie Luciano suffers $500m drop in wealth
Shares in VGI Partners, Robert Luciano’s hedge fund, have fallen 70 per cent in two years to a record low.
What prompted Cathie Wood to quit China
When Alibaba founder Jack Ma was effectively banished in China, it triggered star fund manager Cathie Wood. Her flagship Ark fund now has no Chinese investments.
ASIC warns ASX penny stock pumpers for second time
Pump and dump group organisers taunted ASIC again after the regulator directly messaged them to warn sharemarket manipulation is illegal and risks jail time.
Opinion
The tremors from Evergrande will rumble on for Australia
The real estate giant’s problems will not trigger a financial crisis, but they show that China’s economy must change, and that will have long-term implications for Australia.
Economics editor
COP26 is the real thing and not a drill
While there seems to be a clear path towards a zero-emissions energy economy, it is a really difficult one. It is hard technically and even harder politically.
Columnist
Migration is not a substitute for a more flexible workforce
Australia has a big immigration shortfall. But migrants have also been papering over rigidities in the domestic job market.
Contributor
Australian companies bulking up on optimism
This year could be a record for merger activity as corporate Australia looks through fears of inflationary bottlenecks.
Editorial
Australians need a PhD in ‘borderology’ to figure out the rules
The confusion over domestic borders and travel is mirrored in uncertainty over immigration levels once Australia’s international borders open up.
Columnist
The great interest rate debate takes another turn
Stephen Grenville’s claim that he wants interest rates to actively be pushed up because it is “inevitable”, is like saying we’re all going to die some day, so let’s stop taking care of ourselves.
Contributor
Politics
- Analysis
- ICAC
Even Baird won’t defend Berejiklian over boyfriend
The former NSW premier decided he couldn’t back his friend, ally and successor at a corruption inquiry into her relationship with a disgraced MP.
Berejiklian should have disclosed secret Maguire relationship: Baird
Former NSW premier Mike Baird says he was ‘incredulous’ when he learned of Gladys Berejiklian’s secret relationship with disgraced MP Daryl Maguire.
Maguire was ‘relentless’ in pursuing club bid
Former NSW Premier Mike Baird has told the ICAC former Liberal MP Daryl Maguire “relentlessly” pursued a funding bid for a gun club in his Wagga Wagga electorate ; 60pc of SA now fully vaccinated. Follow updates here.
NSW first off the mark with a pilot to deliver mRNA vaccines
NSW was first to scrap quarantine, now it is first with a facility to develop a local RNA industry.
National cabinet warned on insurance delays from closed borders
The Insurance Council of Australia says delaying the movement of assessors around the country could cost hundreds of millions.
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World
Britain’s NHS sounds COVID-19 alarm but government unmoved
A Boris Johnson lieutenant rules out going back into lockdown, but NHS bosses say it’s time to bring back masks, home-working, and limits on indoor events.
Bankruptcy looms for Garuda, international routes no longer feasible
The last remaining commercial flight route operating between Australia and Indonesia is likely to be axed in the coming weeks.
China coal futures drop on threat of state intervention in crisis
Thermal coal futures trading on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, which have hit record levels in recent weeks, fell the maximum 8 per cent for a second consecutive day on Wednesday.
Supply disruption to China gives hope to Australian beef exporters
China faces a beef shortage if restrictions remain on imports from Brazil and Argentina – which could be good news for Australian farmers.
Musk to become a trillionaire, but not from Tesla: analyst
It will be Elon Musk’s space company, rather than his electric-car maker, that lifts his wealth into the stratosphere, according to one analyst.
Property
- Analysis
- Commercial real estate
North Sydney’s $11b big build
A third wave of projects is lining up to tap the growth expected in North Sydney after the 2024 completion of the Victoria Cross Sydney Metro station.
AusSuper on the hunt for London’s next King’s Cross
The 67-acre site allowed the $190 billion industry fund to notch up a significant offshore property success - and now it wants more.
UTAS plans 2500 new homes for Hobart’s blue-chip Sandy Bay
The University of Tasmania has released plans to develop 2500 homes on what is now its Sandy Bay campus in Hobart.
Cold storage is hot, says Trilogy Funds after $28m buy
In its biggest industrial acquisition, Trilogy Funds has bought a warehouse and cold storage facility at Hexham, Newcastle.
Melbourne Woolworths sale sets new benchmark
The sale of the Blackburn South Woolworths to a local investor on a record low yield reflects the weight of capital seeking convenience-based retail assets.
Wealth
Investors and renters return to cities as pandemic fears ease
Inner-city supply is tightening and rental prices are beginning to increase.
What to do with your SMSF when it’s just you left
Getting the structure of your DIY super fund right is vital to keep things simple after one of you passes on.
- Opinion
- Investing
Do female investors have a perfectionist problem?
Money coaches say women have less invested than men because they are afraid of not getting it absolutely right.
Technology
- Exclusive
- Business IT
‘Terrible mistake’ could send execs to jail over vaccine certificates
Storing employees’ COVID-19 vaccination certificates is a “world of data security pain”, experts warn, which could send unsuspecting business owners or execs to jail.
Netflix tops third-quarter subscriber views, sees upbeat fourth
Netflix added 4.38 million subscribers in the third quarter, and it expects to add 8.5 million customers in the final three months of 2021.
- Exclusive
- Mergers & acquisitions
Ex-AFL star sells start-up for $205m after just four years
The recent boom in Brisbane-based tech company success continues as former Adelaide Crow Brad Moran sells CitrusAd to French giant Publicis Groupe.
Work & Careers
Wage theft is ‘systemic’: 21 universities under investigation
A Senate report into insecure work says wage theft and exploitative workforce practices have become the “contractual norm” in universities.
How to rethink wealth creation (and opportunity)
Mariana Mazzucato says narrow objectives such as how to commercialise university research are like sex - if you want it too much, it won’t happen.
Life & Luxury
How you can live the VIP high life on a superyacht
Not everyone can afford a superyacht, but a new charter company founded on the Gold Coast is offering an entrée into that exclusive club, one cabin at a time.
For this CEO, 3km powering through the ocean is child’s play
These days, former competitive swimmer Jill Berry takes to the water for fun – and to help keep others safe in the surf.
Prostate cancer screening guidelines ‘putting lives at risk’
Specialists say current guidelines don’t include new technology that can sharpen diagnosis and reduce the fear of overtreatment.
A top London chef reveals her recipe for podcast success
Ruth Rogers, co-founder of the famed River Cafe, is turning her talents to a new podcast in which celebrity guests are on the menu.
A day to be charmed in Little Venice
Chioggia lies at the southern end of the vast Venetian Lagoon. It’s a quirkier, pocket-sized version of the famous nearby floating city, one with abundant fresh seafood.
