Macquarie’s war on big four escalates with business lending assault
Macquarie said it had appetite to deploy its retail banking technology into the business market to grow deposits and lending against CBA and NAB.
Vic power system battling heat suffers major outage
Over 1000 megawatts of electricity customer load has been disconnected from the Victorian grid, and AGL’s Loy Yang A has shut down, in the biggest loss this summer.
Macquarie’s $57m man hands reins to trading veteran
Simon Wright will succeed Nicholas O’Kane, the bank’s highest-paid employee, just as commodities trading was expected to slump.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
What we learnt from CSL, Challenger, Seek and Breville’s results
Investors in CSL and Breville have growth questions on their mind, while Seek’s downgrade sent shares skidding. Meanwhile, at Challenger, a bro-mance is brewing.
At least 150 ATO staff implicated in TikTok GST fraud
At least 150 Tax Office officials have been investigated over a far-reaching GST fraud, with some sacked and others facing criminal investigations.
Challenger profit up as customers locked in for longer
Challenger shares jumped as the retirement products provider said more customers were opting for its higher margin longer annuities.
Creditors’ deal ends Fraser Short’s wild hospitality ride
The decision by creditors to accept a deed of company administration proposal from Fraser Short ends a tumultuous 12 months for the former hospitality star.
Breaking news on companies, politics and economics, in your inbox as it happens.
EARNINGS SEASON
Temple & Webster joins the ranks of retail profit beats
The online furniture retailer delivered a record first-half result, a day after JB Hi-Fi smashed expectations and on the heels of Myer, Cettire and Nick Scali.
CSL shares slide on ‘dampened’ Vifor outlook
News of the downgraded outlook for Vifor overshadowed an 11 per cent increase in underlying first-half group net profit and a similar increase in the interim dividend.
Seek cuts dividend on slower job market
Job site Seek downgraded its revenue and profit guidance after job ads fell sharply in November and December.
James Hardie says rate cuts needed to revive renovations
The maker of wall cladding products lifted prices by 14 per cent in its Australasian division and is winning market share.
Breville shares tank as coffee machine maker quits deep discounts
The small appliance maker’s shares dropped more than 10 per cent after weaker sales in Australia and the US hurt its top line.
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Companies
ANZ to cut up to 170 business banking jobs
The job cuts, which equate to about 5 per cent of local commercial banking staff, come as the bank looks to shift smaller customers to digital channels.
Fuel price shock warning for Australia
Petrol and diesel importers should consider long-term supply deals to reduce the risk of price shocks as OPEC could start to influence markets, Rystad Energy said.
Path to ‘catastrophic failure’: CS Energy reports on Callide blast
The Queensland state-owned generator says a series of failures and complex events that caused the generator to explode could not have been anticipated.
Aussie investors count the cash as cyber firm Bugcrowd banks $156m
An Aussie-founded start-up that relocated to the US has closed one of the year’s biggest funding rounds, which will make its early local backers even richer.
Former EY execs form new advisory firm aimed at social services
A former EY partner and director have teamed up to launch a new boutique firm aimed at helping community sector organisations and social service outfits improve their operations.
Liontown boss says more mines will close without bailout
Tony Ottaviano says politicians have done a good job of listening on the plight of the lithium and nickel industries but without action more mine closures and job losses are inevitable.
JB Hi-Fi shares hit record as retailer tops first-half expectations
Chief executive Terry Smart says it is vital for the retailer to keep improving productivity given the rising cost of wages and utilities.
Companies in the News
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Markets
- Live
- Markets Live
ASX ends lower ahead of key US inflation data
Shares ease; CSL double-digit earnings growth; Macquarie warns “substantially” lower profit; Temple & Webster beats forecasts; Seven West Media sales slump.
These funds are still backing ‘once-in-a-generation’ AI rally
One of Australia’s best-performing funds of 2023 has doubled down on artificial intelligence, which drove shares in the tech giants sky-high last year.
How markets will respond to a Trump or Biden win
Both ageing candidates pose problems, but the objective is to make prudent, long-term financial decisions, regardless of the election result.
Bitcoin hits $US50,000 for first time in more than two years
The cryptocurrency is benefitting from an inflow into newly approved spot bitcoin ETFs as well as the S&P 500’s record rally in 2024.
What happened overseas? S&P 500 rally hits a wall amid focus on pending January CPI report
Early gains in New York, which briefly made Nvidia the fourth-largest company by market cap, faded as the session progressed. US CPI data due at 12.30am AEDT Wednesday.
Opinion
A bad week for Australian productivity and prosperity
Michele Bullock may be a glass-half-full optimist, but Labor’s latest moves will make economic recovery that much harder.
Editorial
Biden should step aside – but what is the safest way to do so?
Hanging on or handing over to Kamala Harris both contain huge risks. There is a third choice if the president wants to take it.
Contributor
Australia can’t talk defence by not mentioning China
We cannot win public consent for higher defence spending without being candid with voters on where the threats come from.
Defence expert
How America’s high-pressure economy could implode
It’s good for the time being, but you have to wonder what will happen when the valves are released.
Contributor
Can China escape its debt deflation trap?
Chinese export prices have been falling at their fastest clip since the financial crisis, helping to dampen inflationary pressures worldwide.
Columnist
The cracks deepen beneath the market’s surface
Investors are decidedly upbeat, but analysts warn there are disturbing currents beneath the US sharemarket’s calm surface.
Columnist
Reports
The Critical Minerals dilemma
This report looks at the disconnect between ESG ambitions and market pricing; new biofuels; and alternatives to lithium batteries.
Politics
‘They’d lose every seat’: WA’s GST warning for Albanese
The WA treasurer has warned that any federal government that dared to renege on the state’s favourable GST deal would risk political annihilation in the west.
- Exclusive
- Political donations
Labor rakes in $5m of ‘hidden money’ from big corporates
Payments from gambling giants like Sportsbet, Tabcorp and pokies outfit Endeavour accounted for a chunk of Labor’s pay-for-access packages sold to companies.
- Updated
- Workforce Summit
No scrutiny of Labor’s workplace laws
Labor did not consult its top productivity adviser over its latest workplace laws, including the right to disconnect, a change industry says ‘shows common sense has left the room’.
PM slaps down Greens on negative gearing demands
Anthony Albanese has ruled out negotiations on negative gearing or capital gains tax in return for the support of the Greens
Indigenous jobs reboot to replace Abbott-era program
Federal Labor will tear up the national Indigenous employment program, with new rules expected to create 3000 jobs over three years.
SPONSORED
World
- Analysis
- Energy transition
‘Too hard’: Britain’s Labour, Europe take scalpel to climate plans
Despite all the headlines, the big announcements in London and Brussels are more cosmetic surgery than major policy amputation.
Spy chiefs to meet on truce deal as hostages freed
The heads of the CIA and Mossad spy agency are expected to hold talks with Egyptian and Qatari officials to revive negotiations on a truce and hostage deal.
Trigger-happy Houthis attack ship bound for supporter Iran
The attack on the bulk carrier shows just how widely the rebels now target ships travelling through the critical Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and connecting waterways.
Singapore’s ultra rich shun the bling in laundering crackdown
Sales of luxury cars, properties and golf memberships are falling in the wake of a $3.4 billion money laundering probe.
Security fears as joking Biden joins banned TikTok
The US president has started a campaign account on TikTok, the very app he had banned from federal government workers phones.
Property
- Exclusive
- Luxury property
Castlecrag record on the line with $28m trophy home listing
Sydney’s lower north shore suburb Castlecrag could soon see a new price record, with the arrival of a four-storey harbourside mansion.
Victoria the biggest winner from stamp duty bracket creep
Victoria’s stamp duty rates lacking indexation to housing price growth has meant the proportion of home buyers paying the top rates has increased sixfold.
The tightest suburbs for home buyers are not where you think
These are the suburbs where just 0.3 per cent of the total number of homes are up for grabs.
- Exclusive
- Property development
Melbourne’s first Jewish-owned golf course slated to be $150m housing site
Cranbourne Golf Course was built in 1954 in response to antisemitic policies of other private clubs. It could support a $1 billion housing estate.
Simonds defies falling new-home market with swing to profit
The turnaround in Australia’s home-building market is under way but in the short run, builders will increasingly compete for a smaller pool of new work.
Wealth
How markets will respond to a Trump or Biden win
Both ageing candidates pose problems, but the objective is to make prudent, long-term financial decisions, regardless of the election result.
- Opinion
- Bitcoin
If you can’t resist bitcoin, treat it as a ‘satellite’ investment
Often the hardest part of creating wealth is not figuring out the most exciting investments, it’s about remaining committed to a sound portfolio.
- Opinion
- Investing
Politics and your portfolio (and why it might matter this time)
Elections all over the world mean this is the year when even a constructive backdrop for markets is likely to be challenged by geopolitical changes.
Technology
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
This VC firm has hit a landmark - and it’s payout time
OneVentures has hit a landmark moment in paying back investors of its 2010 fund, including the government, the first of the current era VC firms to do so.
What tech investors will be watching this earnings season
Some stocks will disappoint and others will pop as investors look for consistent growth and cost-cutting, rather than developments in buzzy areas such as AI.
Aussie quantum pioneer lands former Arm boss as chairman
Silicon Quantum Computing, the company formed by former Australian of the Year Michelle Simmons, has appointed Simon Segars, who sold the British chip company for $US32 billion.
Work & Careers
- Series
- Workforce Summit
Four-days or office mandates: Full coverage from the Workforce Summit
The Australian Financial Review Workforce Summit gathers the nation’s most influential business leaders to dissect the profound shifts facing workforce.
Aussie bosses falling behind in tech race
Local business leaders are lagging rich countries in adopting technologies such as artificial intelligence and data analytics, contributing to the economy’s productivity slowdown, Productivity Commission chairwoman Danielle Wood says.
Life & Luxury
Who’s most likely to die from alcohol poisoning, and what they drink
Experienced drinkers who die from alcohol poisoning don’t always have extreme concentrations of alcohol in their blood at the time of death.
What memory gaffes really mean about your mental acuity
Cognitive abilities can’t be evaluated based on anecdotal lapses – memory, no matter what your age, is fallible and malleable.
RM Williams shows tech is big in fashion
Keen to engage new customers, RM Williams has launched the country’s first on-demand, virtual sales floor for 24-7 online shopping.
The airlines making economy class bearable
It’s never going to feel as good as turning left. But finally, many airlines are putting more thought and care into improving the economy experience.
How to start running when you’re over 40
The positives of running are myriad and can include improved heart and lung health, increased joint strength and a reduction in the risk of chronic illnesses.
