The Financial Review Wine Club is the home for seasoned collectors and wine enthusiasts.
Global shift in rate cut bets sparks Santa rally
Australia’s sharemarket is within 95 points of its record high, as traders and investors defy central banks and position for “aggressive” interest rate cuts in 2024.
ASX to rise, S&P 500 edges higher, bitcoin rallies
Australian shares are set to open up. US stocks extend year-end move. Oil, iron ore gain. Bitcoin tops $US44,000.
- Exclusive
- Super wars
Compare the pair: Retail super closes the fee gap
The performance gap between industry and retail superannuation funds is narrowing, raising the prospect of a fightback by for-profit super funds after the savaging wrought by the banking royal commission.
ACCC wants switching banks to be as easy as ditching mobile providers
Gina Cass-Gottlieb’s ACCC deposit inquiry calls for Australia to introduce an account switching service like the ones that operate in Britain and the Netherlands.
- Exclusive
- PwC tax scandal
At PwC, it’s the revenge of the auditors
Long the humbler, more straight-forward and less risky arm of the firm, audit is now expected to be the growth engine and the governance model for the future.
Business fights back against ‘right to disconnect’ from work
Employers have come out in opposition to a Labor-Greens deal on a right to disconnect after warning it risks returning workplaces to rigid nine-to-five environments.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
AI is a two-speed conversation inside companies
CEOs are exploring all sorts of ways to use artificial intelligence. Their workers, however, feel unprepared for changes.
Wealth Generation: News and views to help aspirational investors grow their wealth. In your inbox every Wednesday.
CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE
Christmas gifts for the 1pc
Stuck for a gift for someone who seems to have everything? Don’t hold back.
Tech gifts for those who love the great outdoors
Sometimes, you’ve just got to spend money to save money. Christmas pressies are no exception.
Fabulous presents for your favourite foodies
We’ve sourced the finest china, the cutest aprons and the best mince pies – and more.
Jewellery for Christmas? Here are eight beautiful ideas
You cannot go wrong adding a little dazzle to a loved one’s present haul.
Eight of the best wellness gifts for Christmas
There’s nothing like a new accessory to get someone motivated.
Get the latest business news on the go with the AFR’s new iOS app.
Companies
Sydney Airport flight slot manager has ‘conflict of interest’: ACCC
The company that chooses which aircraft take off and land at Sydney Airport is majority-owned by Qantas and Virgin.
Billionaire taps into couples workforce with iron ore ‘love shacks’
Minerals Resources boss Chris Ellison says the company’s on-site accommodation for couples is as good as anything at a beachside resort in Broome.
KMD dives to lowest since 2020 after sales drop 12.5pc
The owner of Rip Curl and Kathmandu says orders from its wholesale customers have dried up, while sales of rainwear and puffer jackets were weak due to warmer weather in Australia.
Ban short-selling in the ‘national interest’, Chalice boss pleads
Hedge funds targeting pre-revenue companies holds back Australia’s objectives in critical minerals, according to aspirant Chalice.
Qube wins bitter court fight to claim $7m from Martinus Rail
The rail builder’s attempts to block the logistics group from getting access to $7 million in funds held as part of a security deposit have been dismissed.
ABC cuts Q+A schedule by 40pc in 2024
After a tumultuous year involving the departure of host Stan Grant and contentious discussions about Israel and Gaza, the show has been cut to 24 episodes for next year.
Orica prepares for end of thermal coal with $559m software firm buy
The explosives and mining services group is pivoting its business to focus on new mines needed to the transition away from fossil fuels, and on infrastructure.
Companies in the News
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Markets
Oil extends rally as Red Sea shipping risks hamper global trade
Escalating geopolitical risks have introduced a premium to an oil market plagued by scepticism that OPEC+ will adhere to production cuts.
Apple to reach $US4 trillion value in 2024: Wedbush
Dan Ives calls the dispute involving Apple’s watches which has dented the stock’s upward momentum this week a “headache issue” that will be resolved soon.
Tesla is getting trounced by S&P 500 three years after joining
Tesla shares have risen about 11 per cent since entering the benchmark US index, which itself has surged 28 per cent over the same time.
- Opinion
- Investing
Making sense of the December market madness
Equities are on fire and Australian investors are enjoying a broad-based rally in stocks that may just be getting started.
Investors tip strong payouts from sin-binned coal stocks
The coal sector is consolidating as big miners sell assets at bargain prices to juniors that can potentially grow resources and balance dividend payouts.
Opinion
Labor’s best policy might be admitting Red Sea defence gap
If strategy is Labor’s reason, it raises concerns. If there is no available ship, it raises another set of questions about Australia’s alarming lack of military capabilities.
Editorial
Australia’s Hunter frigate project should be sunk
Its crystal clear that the replacement ships for the Anzac class that we cannot send to the Red Sea will not provide a worthwhile capability for the Royal Australian Navy.
Former Admiral
Beware economists who won’t admit they were wrong
From an economic point of view, 2023 will go down in the record books as one of the best years ever.
Contributor
Albanese is running Australia like a low-energy state premier
Labor would be foolish to blame their poll slide solely on interest rates. Their problem is their model of governance belongs in the cheap-money era.
Taiwan: A Trojan horse for Beijing?
Taiwan’s elections next month will once more focus attention on the difficulty of any future move by Beijing to absorb Taiwan.
International editor
The Fed should resist market bullying
The risk is that, to avoid unsettling market volatility, the Fed validates the market loosening with sizeable rate cuts but is forced to reverse course later.
Global financial commentator
Reports
Motoring - Cars to watch
The special report looks at the most exciting cars of the year, sporty EVs, and car collecting as an investment.
Sponsored
by BMWPolitics
Cyclone Jasper’s damage bill mounts as rain eases
While rainfall eases in North Queensland, the cost wrought by Cyclone Jasper is rising.
Manufacturing sector mood hits lowest level since the GFC
A net 41 per cent of manufacturers expect conditions to worsen during the next six months, according to the ACCI-Westpac industrial trends survey.
![“We think it is important that navigation and freedom of movement be allowed [in the Red Sea],” said Anthony Albanese.](http://web.archive.org./web/20231220192912/https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.1895%2C$multiply_4%2C$ratio_1.777778%2C$width_1059%2C$x_465%2C$y_86/t_crop_custom/c_scale%2Cw_140%2Cq_88%2Cf_auto/1ed50171f5859af9ed0f2eed1039be29d58d71c6)
PM offers diplomats against Red Sea attacks, no ships
The stance was immediately slammed by the Coalition as weak, out of step with allies, and deaf to the broader inflationary threat posed by the Houthi attacks.
Red Sea call ‘risks telegraphing capability concerns to adversaries’
The government’s reluctance to send a warship to the Red Sea has the potential to flag internal concerns to adversaries over Australia’s naval capability, a former naval warfare officer warns.
Renewables are cheapest, even with poles, wires and batteries added in
CSIRO’s annual price comparison of energy sources include transmission and storage costs in renewables calculations for the first time. They still come out on top.
SPONSORED
World
EU, France deliver migration crackdowns as populists surge
A ‘breakthrough’ EU deal could end years of infighting over illegal immigrants. Emmanuel Macron needed a key rival’s support for his tough reforms.
Over 100 container ships reroute as US weighs Red Sea response
Insurance premiums are surging for those who do cross the Red Sea, freight rates are up and so are oil prices - all potential factors for more inflation.
Hamas leader visits Egypt amid intensive talks on new ceasefire
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who normally resides in Qatar, typically wades publicly into diplomacy only when progress seems likely.
UK inflation slows more than forecast, fuelling rate-cut bets
Consumer prices rose 3.9 per cent from a year earlier, down from 4.6 per cent in October, according to the latest monthly data.
- Analysis
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The Houthi rebels ignored for 10 years who threaten global trade
Gulf experts say the West may have underestimated the power of the Iran-backed militant group.
Property
House sellers pocket $300,000 gross profits as prices rise
The sharp increase in prices in the September quarter delivered a windfall for many vendors, but profits are expected to weaken next year as prices are predicted to fall.
Building industry payments firm shelves Aussie ambitions, heads to UK
ProjectPay founder Louise Stewart has won a British grant to get her start-up off the ground there, having felt stymied by the political culture in Australia.
- Exclusive
- Rural property
Green Bank, global investors pile into $450m forestry and ag raising
The CEFC has put $75m into a new forestry and landscape fund that intends to generate a chunk of its return from carbon and renewable energy.
Saudis put Western Australia’s largest grain operation up for sale
Spread across a swath of the wheat belt, marketing of the $200 million property caps a busy 12 months for major agriculture transactions in the state.
Stockland says it can develop 12 sites more profitably than Lendlease
The deal involving two of Australia’s largest property developers and investors boosts Stockland’s land bank and will help Lendlease focus on investment.
Wealth
- Opinion
- Flat Chat
How to party without being an animal
These are the five things that will drive your neighbours nuts – this is what you can do to avoid them.
How much should I spend on my partner this Christmas?
We found the average spend by gender – and the gap is nearly $100.
WA works to overcome its venture capital drought
The mining state has found itself “underweight” when it comes to venture capital, with scores of start-ups forced to look interstate or overseas for early investment.
Technology
- Analysis
- The Breakdown
No one can buy Canva now. Other start-ups beware
Any start-up boss hoping to get rich selling their company to a tech giant should learn from Adobe’s failed $US20 billion attempt to buy design app Figma.
Battle for takeover target Whispir escalates
A bidding war for communications software business Whispir sent its shares rallying on Wednesday.
Elon Musk’s X in political advertising push to offset revenue falls
Plans for new political ads team to hit $US100 million in sales ahead of US presidential election are met with industry scepticism.
Work & Careers
CFMEU official gets bail over violent home invasion
Construction union organiser Edmond “Monty” Margjini has been accused of attacking a woman with a machete more than a decade ago.
Flexibility, part-time work needed for better bench, says judge
Court of Appeal judge Janine Pritchard has called for greater flexibility in the judiciary to stop top women candidates self-selecting out of a judicial career.
Life & Luxury
What our most stylish designers will be wearing on New Year’s Eve
It’s the last day of 2023, so why not go out with sartorial fireworks?
Deep-fried mince pies are worth trying, really
The batter coating adds crunch, while the filling becomes richer and gooier.
Beyond power and politics in Washington DC, a surprising culinary find
The US capital is buzzing with the traditional restaurants and tantalising aromas of Ethiopia. Here are seven eateries to try.
The hidden history of Magic Eye pictures
Thirty years ago, a book of bizarre images took the world by storm.
- Opinion
- Review
Here are 11 of the best albums of 2023
This year’s best music features songs to make you think, laugh and dance, plus something special from one of our own.
