Afterpay shuts Money app, ends Westpac deal
Money by Afterpay will close on October 10, saying Block, which bought the buy now, pay later company, may launch its Cash App in Australia.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Top lawyers reveal the big question hanging over deals
The recent flurry of merger and acquisition activity couldn’t have come too soon for deal makers. But in an uncertain world, the question of what is fair value looms large.
- Live
- Markets Live
Shares rise; Ramsay Halted, Oz Minerals cuts dividends
Ramsay slashes dividends, Fonterra lowers milk price forecast. Pexa’s margins rise. Lotto operator Jumbo lifts sales 36pc. Costa imparis avo valuations. Powell speech ahead. Follow updates here.
Lynas soars to record profit on electrification demand
Cashed-up Lynas Rare Earths is accelerating growth plans after delivering record results on the back of strong demand for non-China supply of materials essential in the energy transition.
Wesfarmers lifts dividend, beats estimates
The company said retail trading conditions have remained robust through the first seven weeks of fiscal 2023, with particularly strong sales in Kmart Group.
- Live
- Need to Know
Australia to buy $2.8b of military helicopters from US
WATCH LIVE: Jim Chalmers holding a press conference; Australia’s request for 40 black hawk helicopters approved; Labor open to multi-employer pay deals; Ukraine nuclear plant nearly had a radiation accident. Follow updates here.
Builder collapse shows Australia an outlier with fixed-price contracts
Home building deals in this country leave constructors exposed – and that comes down to banks’ lending models.
The latest in food, wine and where to travel. In your inbox every Saturday.
JOBS SUMMIT
Australia should aim for top five richest countries: BCA
Lobby group the Business Council of Australia also pushed back at union claims that productivity increases were not translating into higher wages.
- Analysis
- Jobs summit
What is sector-wide bargaining, and why do unions want it?
After three decades, sector-wide bargaining is once again a hot topic. But bringing it back will not be easy.
Fears brain drain could accelerate as overseas firms poach Aussie staff
Australia has become a hunting ground for offshore companies looking for lawyers, accountants, data and technology specialists and human resources experts.
PM mulls minimum pay rise for foreign workers
The Albanese government is working on increasing the required pay level that temporary employees must receive to be awarded a visa to migrate to Australia.
‘Address visa issues’: KPMG wants more migrants, now
KPMG will repeat a call at next week’s jobs summit for the federal government to lift the immigration cap to alleviate worker shortages.
review
The 10 key takeaways from the war in Ukraine
Six months on, swaths of the country lie in ruins, thousands are dead and millions displaced. But with Western military and economic aid, the nation fights on.
Why Xi Jinping’s radical secrecy makes the world more dangerous
The secretiveness of Beijing’s ruling party is often dismissed as an eccentricity but with Xi on the verge of a norm-breaking third term, it has real-world consequences.
- Opinion
- Morrison portfolio saga
Morrison’s secret appointments are a slippery slope
Levels of political trust in Australia are among the lowest in the world and this latest saga will not help matters.
What crypto winter? This investor is on a buying spree
Animoca Brands is one of the few organisations left investing as it builds an empire of more than 340 finance, gaming, and social media companies but it is a move that could backfire.
Pakistan’s Imran Khan is now the target of forces he once wielded
Old allies like the military have turned against him, but the former prime minister’s appeal on the street has only grown stronger, setting up a dangerous showdown.
Companies
- Updated
- Earnings season
’320 pilots sick daily’: Qantas cuts flights as COVID losses hit $7b
The national carrier will scrap more trips over the next six months as illness and sky-high fuel prices hurt the airline’s efforts to meet strong travel demand.
Leading US investor cuts Canva value by 44pc
T. Rowe Price has written down its investment in Canva by an additional 30 per cent, after leading its $US200 million investment round in September last year.
Zip looks to groceries and fuel spending as economy turns down
Buy now, pay later outfit Zip Co is exiting the United Kingdom as it continues its retreat to core markets in Australia and the United States.
A coal miner turns home builder to lure city workers to the bush
Whitehaven Coal will subdivide land and build houses in rural NSW as part of efforts to woo families and ease a skills shortage that is getting worse.
- Updated
- Earnings season
Merged $200b asset manager has to ‘prove’ its value: Perpetual CEO
Perpetual’s chief executive Rob Adams said he was not concerned by “a few hours of share price movements” after the stock slid almost 8.5 per cent following a deal to take over rival Pendal.
Ramsay keeps door open for KKR’s cash bid
The takeover target is still willing to engage on the cash offer of $88 per share but it has axed an alternate plan which would see its shareholders own an ongoing stake in French hospital operator Ramsay Sante.
- Opinion
- Mergers & acquisitions
Perpetual gets Pendal but passive still in power
The mega-merger of two blue-chip Aussie fund managers is historic, but can’t roll back the tide towards low-cost passive investing.
Companies in the News
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Markets
Kerr Neilson flags Platinum board exit, profits tumble
Kerr Neilson still owns 21.5 per cent of the asset manager and says he has no plans to sell, while Morningstar warns of more fee pressure on the group.
Here’s what happened in markets overnight
Australian shares are set to open slightly higher as Wall Street continues to tread water despite better-than-expected joblessness figures and economic data.
- Updated
- Earnings season
Soaring margins fuel Viva Energy to record profits
The company has posted record half-year earnings as a global energy crunch helped it deliver a surge in pre-tax revenue from its refining business of nearly 750 per cent.
- Opinion
- Hedge funds
The enduring legacy of the real hedge fund king
Julian Robertson’s influence on Wall Street will live longer than that of other great investors of this generation.
- Updated
- Earnings season
Flight Centre eyes rebound, but 99 Bikes has stock stack
The travel giant narrowed its full-year loss to $287 million, and says its underlying earnings are turning around from the pandemic’s depths.
Opinion
Business has been outplayed by unions on the jobs agenda
Business is being outmanoeuvred by unions and risks the government imposing an agenda closer to the desires of the ACTU at next week’s Jobs and Skills Summit.
Economics editor
Why haven’t bank bosses rated jobs summit invites?
At the very least, the Australian Banking Association’s chair and deputy chair, Peter King and Marnie Baker, should be asked to attend the Jobs and Skills Summit.
Editorial
Labor must focus on voters, not hounding Morrison
There is an accountability and political dividend from the three probes into the Morrison era. But the main game for voters today is the cost of living.
Political editor
Alan Joyce pleads guilty, guilty, guilty – but it’s not his fault
The Qantas CEO concedes customer service at the airline is not good enough and that the Qantas brand has been damaged. But he insists it is recovering quickly and Qantas is doing better than its competitors.
Columnist
Keep enterprise in bargaining
Rather than the ACTU’s retro pattern bargaining demands, next week’s jobs summit should endorse a return to the enterprise bargaining system that Paul Keating set up.
Editorial
To stop pork-barrelling, confiscate the pork
Handing power to public servants won’t fix the problem of politically targeted grants. Governments should do less and spend less.
Columnist
Politics
- Opinion
- Morrison portfolio saga
Morrison’s secret appointments are a slippery slope
Levels of political trust in Australia are among the lowest in the world and this latest saga will not help matters.
Coalition’s modern manufacturing grants used as election announcements
Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic has slammed the Morrison government for announcing the winners during the election, instead of when they were needed mid-pandemic.
CEO migrant success story calls for ‘bigger Australia’
Mike Ferraro, son of an Italian rubbish truck driver and now CEO of ASX 100 company Alumina Limited, says next week’s jobs summit should embrace a “bigger Australia”.
‘Address visa issues’: KPMG wants more migrants, now
KPMG will repeat a call at next week’s jobs summit for the federal government to lift the immigration cap to alleviate worker shortages.
- Exclusive
- Cost of living
Cost of living looms as danger area for PM as concerns soar
The cost of living is swamping every other issue of voter concern, including climate change, COVID-19 and the creaking health system, the latest True Issues survey shows.
SPONSORED
World
Ukraine nuclear plant on high alert after shutdown
A loss of power to the Zaporizhzhia reactors’ cooling systems could cause a nuclear meltdown, as fighting continues around the plant.
Judge orders unsealing of Trump search affidavit
The order means the public could soon get more details about what led FBI officials to search the former president’s home on August 8 as part of an investigation into classified documents he retained.
Australian super seeks assurances on Indonesia investment risk
A transforming economy holds plenty of potential for international investors, but the Indonesian government knows it must overcome concerns about corruption and other risks.
Thai PM suspended after court challenge on term limits
The court’s decision on Prayuth Chan-ocha could open a new chapter of turmoil in the nation’s troubled politics.
California to ban sale of new petrol cars by 2035
The move could dramatically accelerate the transition to electric vehicles in the United States, as many other states follow California’s lead on car emission standards.
Property
Builder collapse shows Australia an outlier with fixed-price contracts
Home building deals in this country leave constructors exposed – and that comes down to banks’ lending models.
Charter Hall takes funds under management to $80b
Charter Hall’s deal-making prowess has proven robust amid economic turbulence, taking its funds under management to near $80b, and dramatically boosting its earnings.
Macquarie-backed BTR platform hits $660m with South Melbourne deal
The acquisition of the South Melbourne project from developer Michael Dib gives Local a pipeline of more than 900 apartments.
Iglu secures UNSW site for mammoth student housing project
Iglu, which is backed by Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, will develop a 1100-bed facility on the Anzac Parade site in Sydney.
Queensland company surged on Homebuilder before collapsing
Logan City-based Oracle jumped from 76 home building contracts to 316, setting the builder up for a world of pain when costs started soaring.
Wealth
Want to be a Rich Lister? Get up at 4am and take an ice bath
Simon Beard says being an entrepreneur is like trying to make it to the NBA. His days are literally planned to the minute. Hear his story on the How I Made It podcast. Listen for free.
- Opinion
- Flat Chat
Sweet spot for landlords to lower levies, attract tenants
A heated pool and spa might seem attractive, but many renters would rather save than swim.
- Opinion
- Carbon challenge
How your pension fund scraps your bids to reduce emissions
While you’re doing your best to help avoid a global sauna for your kids by installing solar, your pension fund could be busily unwinding all your good work.
Technology
What crypto winter? This investor is on a buying spree
Animoca Brands is one of the few organisations left investing as it builds an empire of more than 340 finance, gaming, and social media companies but it is a move that could backfire.
WiseTech snaps up tech talent amid start-up layoffs, profit surge
CEO Richard White said the previously highly acquisitive firm could once again be stepping up its M&A activity after reporting an 80 per cent jump in net profit.
Amazon keeps growing, and so does its cache of data on you
Amazon will spend billions of dollars in two gigantic acquisitions that, if approved, will broaden its ever-growing presence in the lives of consumers.
Work & Careers
Melbourne Uni might be Australia’s top ranked, but not by its students
Students at Melbourne are unhappy with their university, while little-known Avondale gets top marks.
Gen Z workers are ‘quiet quitting’ (and why it’s misguided)
Steer clear of any employer that touts a mission or promises to give your life purpose. It will only lead to disappointment.
Life & Luxury
How to make viral videos (and bank millions)
A group of illusionists cracked the formula for surefire winning content and got rich making addictive footage for social media.
Meet the ‘fairy godmother’ of Instagram
As head of fashion at the social media giant, former magazine editor Eva Chen has a singular influence on what’s in style.
This Father’s Day, spoil Dad with this $3m track car
Failing that, how about a Lego F1 McClaren and a quartet of Porsche socks? We’ve got you covered.
20 years on, there is still more to learn from Ottolenghi
In 2002, an unknown pastry chef opened a deli in London. Two decades later, he is renowned across the globe – and is soon heading to Australia.
Carla Zampatti’s ‘fabulous’ advice for women leaders
From parliamentary portraits to CEO appointments, a new exhibition charts the runaway success of this fashion icon.
