The Energy Awards recognise the people and businesses driving the future of the industry.
- Updated
- Andrew Forrest
Labor’s hydrogen dream stalls as Fortescue slims down H2 vision
Fortescue will cut 700 jobs and slow its push into green hydrogen in a blow to the Albanese government’s plan to make Australia a hydrogen superpower supported by more than $8 billion of taxpayer funded incentives.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
World’s biggest IPO has Australian flavour and implications
It might lack burritos, but we’re watching Lineage, a food storage play with Australian assets trying to secure a $30 billion listing.
ART closes in on AustralianSuper’s top spot with new merger
The deal will add Qantas’ $9 billion in funds under management to the Australian Retirement Trust’s ballooning $280 billion-plus asset pool.
‘Another bombshell’: new rules anger accountants
Labor is being urged to delay implementing the new standards and obligations for accountants and tax agents, who accuse the government of significant overreach.
Investors size up ASX small caps as Wall Street pops
With the US central bank looking like it will begin cutting rates, smaller stocks there have been on a tear. The same could happen in local equities.
The $50,000 arts degree arrives, as student debt climbs
The cost of a degree is at historical highs, with no relief in sight for at least another two years.
Pernod Ricard exits Australian wine making, sells to Bain consortium
The French giant’s portfolio of local brands – as well as those in New Zealand and Spain – will be combined with Accolade Wines, the company behind Hardys.
Wealth Generation: News and views to help aspirational investors grow their wealth. In your inbox every Wednesday.
BUILDING BAD
- Opinion
- Building Bad
Only a full judicial inquiry can lift the lid on the CFMEU
The scandals at the construction union leave a host of unanswered questions that will shape the future of industrial relations in Australia.
- Investigation
- Building Bad
CFMEU boss caught on covert camera allegedly taking a cash bribe
A police lens hidden in the roof of the union’s Sydney office is said to have captured Darren Greenfield being passed money in a suspected kickback deal.
NSW premier backs independent administration of CFMEU
Chris Minns will suspend the union and ban any donations from it after a hidden police camera captured a union leader being passed $5000 in a suspected kickback deal.
- Exclusive
- Building Bad
Albanese to push aside CFMEU bosses
The Albanese government will seek to appoint an external administrator to clean up the CFMEU, sidelining its national and state leaders. The MUA is also considering whether to split from the CFMEU.
How vicious feuds 50 years ago sowed the seeds of the CFMEU
The evolution of today’s militant construction union can be traced back to the unlikely locale of the leafy Sydney suburb of Hunters Hill.
US ELECTION
Former rivals back Trump in show of Republican unity
The second day of the Republican convention showed the kind of discipline and co-ordinated messaging not normally associated with the former president’s political operation.
- Analysis
- US election
Biden circle shrinks as Democrats fear election wipeout
The attempted assassination of Donald Trump at the weekend has muted some of the public pressure on the US president to exit the race. But the party remains deeply divided.
Biden looks for early Democratic nomination to silence critics
Democrats’ dismay with the president after his disastrous debate performance is still simmering and could rear its head again.
‘I carry a firearm every day’: party chief who wanted gun inside RNC
Guns were allowed to the edge of the Republican National Convention perimeter this week. Their own politicians wanted to bring their pistols inside the venue.
Trump could be ‘a loser’ if he abandons Ukraine, says Tony Abbott
The former prime minister reckons that Vladimir Putin owes the families of MH17 victims an apology and compensation for the “atrocity”.
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Companies
Bankers seeking their next big pay day are chasing these clients
Investment banks are now after riskier, smaller companies so they can pounce on the spoils of a trophy listing or a huge sale to private equity.
Resurgent Zip pays big break fee to eliminate its debt
Zip has indicated it will push the accelerator on growth in the United States despite regulators investigating whether it has violated consumer protection laws.
Top 10 super funds revealed for FY24
A tiny mining industry fund delivered the highest returns for the second year in a row, with two retail super giants joining it in first place.
Pernod Ricard exits Australian wine making, sells to Bain consortium
The French giant’s portfolio of local brands – as well as those in New Zealand and Spain – will be combined with Accolade Wines, the company behind Hardys.
- Updated
- Big four
ANZ board ‘acutely focused’ on trading scandal
In a note to staff, the bank’s executives said directors and senior management met on Tuesday to review probes into workplace conduct and market manipulation.
BHP breaks iron ore export record, promises copper lift
The mining giant could raise copper production by 10 per cent in the year ahead as its most important commodities offset nickel and coal woes.
Ramsay’s French asset posts weaker earnings, launches debt refinancing
The healthcare provider says lower government subsidies and inflation are hurting the performance of its Ramsay Sante business.
Companies in the News
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Markets
Interest rates might need to stay high to tame inflation: IMF
The IMF’s warning comes as economists await June quarter CPI numbers, which will be decisive in determining whether the RBA raises interest rates in August.
ASX resets record as property, tech rally; gold stocks climb
Shares extend advance above 8000 points; BHP breaks iron ore export record, promises copper lift; Cettire flags revenue, customers ahead of FY24 report; gold climbs to record; New Zealand Q2 inflation slows, keeps rate cuts on the table. Follow updates here.
What happened overnight? The Dow gained as rally broadened, yields eased
Australian shares were set to open higher. The Dow rose 743 points or 1.9 per cent; UnitedHealth surged. Trump would keep Powell, saw 60-100 per cent tariffs on Chinese imports.
Bond market dials up US rate cut bets; RBA left behind
Goldman Sachs says there is now “solid rationale” for the Federal Reserve to start cutting rates this month. It’s a different picture in Australia, where markets are still pricing in a rate rise.
Investors to pull money from banks as property, miners rebound
Equity strategists are expecting the ASX 200 to stay around 8000 points until the end of the year. But it won’t be the banks leading the year-end rally.
Opinion
Private equity has become hazardous terrain for investors
The days of easy windfalls from freakishly loose monetary policy are gone. Now, private capital is much more hazardous terrain for investors.
Contributor
Australia’s blue blood miner, management moderniser and business nationalist
During his heyday in the 1970s and ’80s, Sir Roderick Carnegie was a believer in the power of big corporations competing in open markets to drive human progress.
Editorial
‘We have a country to save’: Republicans rally to a reborn Trump
The Republican National Convention is showcasing a party dominated by Donald Trump and his views, while the disarray in the Democrats just keeps coming.
Columnist
Why Trump and other trends all point to higher inflation
Societal forces from politics to geopolitics to de-globalisation to ageing and climate change are creating conditions that push towards higher inflation.
Economics professor
Time running out to fix school funding sticking point
Here we are, 12 years later, with at least one school generation having finished their education, and there’s still no needs-based Gonski funding for disadvantaged students.
Charity leader
How toxic talk turns too easily to assassin’s bullets
A more centrist political culture doesn’t make Australia immune to the language that has inflamed American politics in recent times, writes Georgina Downer.
Robert Menzies Institute
Reports
Sustainability Leaders
The list celebrates Australasian companies that are making real progress in tackling sustainability challenges – and delivering business value along the way.
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by BCGPolitics
Trump could be ‘a loser’ if he abandons Ukraine, says Abbott
The former prime minister reckons that Vladimir Putin owes the families of MH17 victims an apology and compensation for the “atrocity”.
‘Alltoohardism’ supplants climate denial as obstacle to renewables
Chris Bowen remains upbeat about achieving 82 per cent renewable energy generation by the end of the decade.
Air force officials rebuff concerns over slow pace of missile defence
Military experts have warned Australia is not moving quickly enough to be able to defend itself against missile strikes amid lessons from Ukraine and Israel.
Chief justice intervenes in tax plan for judges
Federal Court Chief Justice Debbie Mortimer has also banned judges using their travel allowance for conferences.
Contribution caps to be raised or removed under aged care reforms
The lifetime contribution cap for residential care would increase from $76,096 to $190,000, and abolished for home care.
SPONSORED
World
New Zealand inflation slows to three-year low
Three of the country’s main banks brought forward forecasts for RBNZ rate cuts after the inflation report.
Like Vance, Rudd has changed his views on Trump
The Australian ambassador to the US says he has been busy building bridges with Donald Trump’s team and the Republicans’ MAGA movement.
Biden looks for early Democratic nomination to silence critics
Democrats’ dismay with the president after his disastrous debate performance is still simmering and could rear its head again.
Fewer aristocrats: Starmer lays out left-wing vision
The supposedly cautious UK PM is proposing votes for 16-year-olds, taxpayer funds for green energy, nationalising the railways and rolling out new workers’ rights.
French government to resign but stay on in caretaker role, sources say
The caretaker government will run current affairs in France, including the start of the Olympics, but cannot pass laws.
Property
Apartment starts fall to 11-year low
Industry groups say the extra costs of construction union agreements compound rising materials and financing costs to make housing projects unprofitable.
Melbourne a launching pad for Hong Kong hotel brand
Lanson Place will open its first Australian property in September after spending $80m repurposing the former Salvation Army Printing Works in East Melbourne
Tenerife waiters forced to live in tents amid tourist-driven property boom
Low-paid service workers who are vital to the tourism industry are being squeezed out of the market because of the boom in holiday rentals.
Dexus poaches AustralianSuper’s infrastructure tsar Nik Kemp
It is the biggest hire so far by the company’s new chief executive, Ross Du Vernet, who took over the top post from long-serving Darren Steinberg this year.
Remote work crushes next wave of office towers: experts
The next wave of CBD skyscrapers may not emerge for another decade as Sydney and Melbourne office markets recover from the rise of remote work and record high vacancy rates.
Wealth
ART closes in on AustralianSuper’s top spot with new merger
The deal will add Qantas’ $9 billion in funds under management to the Australian Retirement Trust’s ballooning $280 billion-plus asset pool.
Popularity of sustainable ETFs dives to lowest in a decade
Platinum Asset Management will terminate its Global Transition Fund due to low demand.
These cheap mining stocks still offer opportunity for investors
A drop in mining business valuations has opened a window of opportunity for investors looking to lock in cheap prices and potentially big dividends.
Technology
- Exclusive
- Funding
Construction start-up lands mega $105m deal
Melbourne software company HammerTech has landed a $105 million investment from Californian private equity shop Riverwood Capital.
- Exclusive
- Funding
Woolies, Harris Farm, Tesla chair, pile in to back biosecurity start-up
ExoFlare has plans to build a global biosecurity tech firm, modelled on international cybersecurity players, and has big-name backers watching as it helps tackle bird flu.
- Exclusive
- Funding
Sydney VC raises $20m in four days for ‘evergreen’ fifth fund
Early-stage software investor EVP’s fifth fund is targeting an underserved segment of the Australian capital market, and pulled in $20 million since last Thursday.
Work & Careers
‘I can only fail to where I am now’: How the worst-case scenario led to the perfect career
Check out the latest post in our fortnightly AFR series featuring professionals who have made a big career leap into the unknown.
Chief justice intervenes in tax plan for judges
Federal Court Chief Justice Debbie Mortimer has also banned judges using their travel allowance for conferences.
Life & Luxury
The luxury watches people are buying even as the cost of living bites
At a time of tightened spending, high-end labels are showing what it takes to bring attention back to the wrist.
- Opinion
- Style
Has the ‘memeification’ of fashion gone too far?
Luxury brands are capitalising on pop culture moments, but it could turn fashion into a joke.
No great leap to self-driving cars, just small steps
The head of Mercedes-Benz’s automation program admits self-driving is lagging, but says the tech is already bringing big gains in safety.
How to pack and stay sane when you travel 200 days a year for work
Photographer Cindy Miller Hopkins travels from polar regions to steamy island jungles. She shares some of her packing tips – including taking two of everything.
This could be the funniest business book you’ll read all year
Former Australian trade negotiator Dmitry Grozoubinski has written a tome about international trade policy. And for that, he’s very, very sorry.
