Join the debate around the future of ESG in today’s business and financial markets.
- Exclusive
- Governance
ASX warned its race, sexuality push on boards is misguided
Company directors would be asked to disclose their sexuality, any Indigenous heritage and disabilities under controversial updates to diversity reporting rules.
- Live
- Markets Live
ASX to fall, oil and iron ore drop
Shares are set to open lower as key commodities slide; AFT expands in the US; gold jumps 1 per cent; Q1 pre-partial GDP data at 11.30am. Follow updates here.
- Exclusive
- Indigenous justice
‘Disgraceful’ government neglect costs Indigenous funds $1b
Two big government funds set up to benefit Indigenous people without native title rights were shackled for decades by the investment equivalent of stuffing money under a mattress.
- Live
- Need to Know
Coalition under pressure to release nuclear election policy
Energy minister Chris Bowen says the Coalition must release its nuclear policy; Matildas defeat China 2-0; Israel declares four more hostages are dead in Gaza. Follow updates here.
- Analysis
- Monetary policy
The heated phone calls that landed Andrew Hauser at the RBA
The deputy governor expects similarly frank discussions in his new job. He wants to hear from everyone – including the “crazy guy in the room”.
Nigel Farage puts another nail in UK Tories’ coffin
His move to stand in a winnable seat for the populist Reform Party comes as fresh opinion polls show Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives on course for an historic loss.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Brett Blundy’s poaching of Solomon Lew’s exec leaves a big question
As Solomon Lew’s Premier Investments considers a spin-off of Smiggle, the departure of the chain’s boss, John Cheston, raises questions about the timing of such a deal.
Get the front page and latest edition of the Financial Review as it was printed — delivered to your inbox every morning.
Edition
Financial Review Rich List 2024
Tracking the fortunes of Australia’s richest people since 1983 | Australia’s 200 most wealthy and how they are handing over the keys to the kingdom
tuesday tech
- Exclusive
- Funding
Super funds, CSL pour $270m into venture capital fund
Australia’s largest life science investment fund, Brandon Capital, has banked $270 million of a planned $350 million raise for its sixth VC fund.
- Analysis
- AI
Apple’s Siri to get its shot at AI redemption
Once the best (and only) AI assistant on phones and other devices, Siri has fallen into disrepair. Next week, Apple is expected to announce a host of improvements.
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
VC firms lured to Qld by government funding
Early Tritium investors who sold out of the Brisbane-based company close to the peak of its valuation are among four VC firms to receive government backing.
- Exclusive
- Start-ups
Providoor scraps hot food to concentrate on frozen meals
Online celebrity chef meal provider Providoor will target a growing market for pre-prepared meals, after struggling with delivery services for its hot meals.
Aussie experts can stop your smart-device cameras spying on you
When photos snapped by a robot vacuum cleaner of a woman on the toilet went viral, the smart home sector knew it had a problem; Aussie academics claim to have solved it.
mabo legacy
How the High Court ‘stunned’ Eddie Mabo’s lawyers and saved the case
Three decades later, members of Mabo case’s legal team reflect on the moment that turned their approach to the historic land rights case.
- Exclusive
- Indigenous justice
‘Land rich, dirt poor’: Price calls for native title reforms
Senator Price said while well-meaning, laws needed to change to encourage private homeownership on native title land as well as more business creation, including Aboriginal owned mines.
- Investigation
- Indigenous justice
Call to reform Mabo’s $1b native title dividend
Native title groups hosting Australia’s iron ore industry are holding more than $1 billion of net assets in trusts, but after 32 years of the native title regime, there is little to show for the vast majority of Indigenous Australians.
Mabo hasn’t closed the gap, even in the Pilbara
Two of the lawyers behind the landmark claim by land rights activist Eddie Mabo say native title “hasn’t spread the wealth evenly”.
- Exclusive
- Indigenous justice
‘Disgraceful’ government neglect costs Indigenous funds $1b
Two big government funds set up to benefit Indigenous people without native title rights were shackled for decades by the investment equivalent of stuffing money under a mattress.
Get the latest business news on the go with the AFR’s new iOS app.
Companies
China-linked investors forced to offload Northern Minerals shares
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the decision, based on Foreign Investment Review Board advice, was made to “protect our national interest”.
Brett Blundy poaches new Lovisa boss from Solomon Lew’s empire
The jeweller’s chief executive, Victor Herrero, will be succeeded by John Cheston, who runs Smiggle. Premier Investments has been hoping to float the kid’s stationery chain.
- Exclusive
- Poker machines
Sydney’s Mounties club under AUSTRAC scrutiny for pokies profits
The club, in the city’s south-west, is one of the biggest in terms of gaming machines profit. It is unclear if other NSW clubs are under similar scrutiny from the financial crimes watchdog.
- Updated
- Hedge funds
Regal Partners goes big on private debt after buying Merricks Capital
The transaction will lift the firm’s assets under management to $15.1 billion and increases its exposure to one of the industry’s fastest-growing sectors.
Brookfield’s $10b Neoen bid good news for Macquarie: JPMorgan
The tilt at the French utility was just the first example of the renewed appetite for green projects, the investment bank’s analyst Andrew Triggs says.
Qatar Airways CEO reports ‘positive’ progress on bid to boost flights
The new chief executive of Qatar Airways expressed hopes talks to expand its right to land at major Australian airports would conclude soon.
Afterpay says Treasury has overreached on BNPL regulation
Consumer groups, banks and even the corporate regulator say they also have concerns about Labor’s proposed laws to regulate buy now, pay later as credit.
Companies in the News
Search companies
View stories and data from an ASX listed company
Markets
RBA rate rise still expected even after ‘balanced’ wage review
Bond traders are still anticipating the Reserve Bank may lift the cash rate to tame inflation, even as the Fair Work Commission kept the minimum wage increase below 4 per cent.
What happened overnight? Nvidia leapt still higher, helping turn S&P 500 positive
While US factory data missed, bond yields fell on hopes that the economy will slow enough soon enough to pave the way for a rate cut. Nvidia and Apple advance on Microsoft on AI bets.
Investors pull money from tech in ‘next phase’ of the AI trade
Hedge funds have trimmed exposure to the Magnificent Seven and increased holdings in the utilities and healthcare stocks as the AI rally broadens to other pockets of the sharemarket
Barrenjoey picks Abu Dhabi for offshore fixed-income trading unit
The local advisory group has become the first investment bank to set up a bond sales and trading operation in the city, choosing it over London or New York.
ASX rises; real estate, banks gain, iron ore hits six-week low
Australian shares end higher. Oil falls as OPEC+ extends production cuts. Regal buys Merricks Capital for $235 million. Follow updates here.
Opinion
Crackdown on Chinese investors a cautionary tale
Small critical minerals companies are caught up in the midst of a geopolitical struggle between China and the West. Northern Minerals is the latest example.
Columnist
Josh Frydenberg’s female vote of one
White middle-aged men can no longer get away with crushing young women’s careers.
Senior correspondent
Real wage pain with no productivity gain
Despite the big rises in the minimum wage over the past three years, it has not caught up with the growth in consumer prices since the pandemic.
Editorial
Shangri-La reveals a region short on peace and harmony
The rhetoric at the annual Singapore security conference says that even stabilised relations with China will remain testing for Australian governments.
Geopolitical analyst
Why Putin’s nuclear weapons threats are a flop
The western alliance is intensifying its support for Ukraine in a way that was unthinkable at the beginning of the war.
Columnist
How is the transition to net zero going to be paid for?
Private investment will have to carry most of the load in a new green economy. But new tax and super policies can help as well.
Energy expert
Reports
Driving an electric future
This Insights Report looks at the benefits and remaining hurdles of broadscale EV adoption from a business and consumer perspective.
Sponsored
by LDVPolitics
Immigration a rising concern for voters
Immigration has surged as an issue of concern among voters while the government’s perceived handling of the issue is continuing to decline.
We got it wrong on record migration: Treasury boss
Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy said the agency’s “frankly poor” forecasting owed to a failure to anticipate a sharp rise in foreign student numbers.
- Updated
- Minimum wage
Weak productivity halts minimum wage rise
The Fair Work Commission has warned that stalled productivity and falling profits in the retail and hospitality industries remain barriers to reversing the fall in real wages since the pandemic.
Wong slaps down Dutton, Greens over Gaza conflict
Quitting an international court would undermine efforts to call out China, the foreign minister said, while accusing the Greens of collaborating with extreme anti-Israel protesters.
Bill Shorten’s speechwriter earning $620,000
A former scriptwriter for soap operas Sons and Daughters and A Country Practice now earns more than a senator as “specialist speechwriter”.
SPONSORED
World
Mexico’s first woman president inherits debt and violence
Claudia Sheinbaum capitalised on outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s popularity while also inheriting rampant criminal violence and a large fiscal deficit.
Jacob Zuma the disruptor has South Africa’s fate in his hands
Six years after being pushed from office, the former prime minister successfully upstaged his successor Cyril Ramaphosa in national elections this week.
Netanyahu aide: Gaza plan ‘not a good deal’, but Israel accepts it
In an interview with Britain’s Sunday Times, chief foreign policy adviser Ophir Falk said Joe Biden’s proposal was “a deal we agreed to”.
- Opinion
- East Asia Forum
History will judge the new era of US protectionism harshly
The unseemly contest by Joe Biden and Donald Trump to outdo each other in trade protectionism will make the world become less prosperous and more unpredictable.
- Opinion
- US election
It’s not the economy, stupid. Voters blame Biden for inequality
It’s unfair to blame the US president alone for imbalances that have been widening for decades, but nor will selling the good news harder make any difference.
Property
Migration behind Queensland house price surge: experts
Brisbane has overtaken Melbourne as the second-most expensive city to buy a house and Queensland is now the ‘epicentre’ of the housing crisis, an academic says
Why owner-occupiers beat investors for industrial property
There’s a soft rebound coming in sub-$40 million commercial property as rates ease, but different sectors face their own challenges.
House prices in cheaper suburbs surge 10pc in three months
Strong demand for affordable homes fueled a sharp increase in prices across some of the cheaper suburbs in Sydney and Perth, according to CoreLogic.
Downsizers who ‘weren’t looking’ buy $3.6m home
Competition for smaller homes in established suburbs like Claremont is so intense that many downsizers plan to build anew. But if they see something suitable, they jump at it.
Sydney’s home values to hit new highs within weeks
The city has fully recovered from the recent downturn, while Brisbane overtook Canberra as the second most expensive capital city.
Wealth
- Opinion
- First-home buyers
Why Gen Z’s share portfolios should be free of capital gains tax
There’s little prospect of housing affordability improving, so the portfolios of young savers should get the same tax-free treatment as the family home.
How to invest like a Rich Lister and beat the market
There are 37 listed stocks linked to Rich List members, and their ability to deliver above-market returns is impressive.
Decades after tycoon’s death, his family is suing each other over a mansion
Tech tycoon’s widow says she felt ‘used and abused’ in a dispute that pitted her three children against her – and each other.
Technology
- Opinion
- AI
Key workers left as invisible bystanders to the AI revolution
A hype-driven, tech-led approach to AI adoption will harm workers, disappoint investors and damage the economy, we must listen and learn from workers at the coalface.
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
VC firms lured to Qld by government funding
Early Tritium investors who sold out of the Brisbane-based company close to the peak of its valuation are among four VC firms to receive government backing.
- Analysis
- AI
Apple’s Siri to get its shot at AI redemption
Once the best (and only) AI assistant on phones and other devices, Siri has fallen into disrepair. Next week, Apple is expected to announce a host of improvements.
Work & Careers
- Exclusive
- Workplace
Gen AI tools for lawyers ‘hallucinate’ up to one in three times
Generative artificial intelligence tools designed for the legal industry make up false or misleading information up to one in three times, a study has found.
- Updated
- Minimum wage
Weak productivity halts minimum wage rise
The Fair Work Commission has warned that stalled productivity and falling profits in the retail and hospitality industries remain barriers to reversing the fall in real wages since the pandemic.
Life & Luxury
- Driving With Tony Davis
- Motoring
More than 20 hybrid-powered Hypercars are set to battle it out at Le Mans
The stakes couldn’t be higher for this ultra-competitive class at next weekend’s race: “If you win Le Mans, all the people around the world know it,” says Ferrari’s endurance boss, Antonello Coletta.
Why we should embrace tall-tree tourism
Only 34 per cent of the world’s surviving forests are old-growth ones, and many are under threat. If California’s Redwood National Park is anything to go by, there is hope, however.
This Tasmanian mill survived world wars and doonas. Can it go global?
It was founded in 1874 when Australia was the largest producer of wool on the planet. Today the team at Waverley Mills has big plans for a sustainable future.
Three ways to start exercising outdoors – and stick to it
Hate the gym? There are clear benefits to spending time in nature, so here’s how to start exercising outside and stick with it.
Tips for buying a suit off the rack
While tailor-made is best, it’s not always affordable or practical for everyday wear. We asked an expert how to buy instore.
