- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Housing crisis rages, but there’s no money in building flats
The property developer’s shock profit downgrade is all about its struggles to make apartment projects profitable, even as housing shortages worsen.
- Opinion
- Canberra Observed
Short-term politics won’t leave sustainable childcare legacy
Five years ago, Labor promised to subsidise childcare wages and was howled down. Now, it hardly moves the dial, writes Phillip Coorey.
- Analysis
- CFMEU
CFMEU is a dirty word the industry doesn’t want to talk about
A construction industry conference billed as important as UN climate conferences barely touched corruption allegations roiling the sector.
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
Brumby urged to follow Breakthrough Victoria CEO out the door
The chief executive of the Victorian government’s Breakthrough Victoria fund, Grant Dooley, has resigned and backed an overhaul of the John Brumby-led board.
- Opinion
- Australian economy
RBA returns serve on inflation
Why the RBA disagrees with the Albanese government on inflation, writes Jennifer Hewett.
Eyes on Macquarie as distressed debt vultures circle Bingo
Street Talk understands the debt is again changing hands among a handful of special situation specialists, including debt trading house SC Lowy.
Brokers reveal ‘bargain’ stock picks after ASX meltdown
Analysts are hunting among the rubble of this week’s sharemarket crash, which they say has created an opportunity to snap up some growth and cyclical stocks at bargain prices.
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PARIS 2024
Our best Games: How Aussies won four gold medals in five hours
Four gold medals secured in quick succession brought the Australian gold medal tally to 18 – our greatest Olympic result. And there are still four days to go.
Medal mania: This is Australia’s best Games ever
Australia won four gold medals in five hours, surpassing the record set in Athens and Tokyo. Here’s what you missed overnight.
The new king of skateboarding worries he’s too old. He’s 21.
Keegan Palmer joined fellow Gold Coaster Arisa Trew in taking gold. It was his second, and he wants more. But the skateboarder frets he might be past his prime.
Australia snatches cycling gold as Brit rivals suffer last-gasp disaster
The great sports rivalry between Australia and Britain was on full display as the Aussie men’s pursuit track cycling team won gold for the first time in two decades.
Aussie hockey player apologises after Paris cocaine arrest
Kookaburras player Tom Craig was released with a warning and apologised after being arrested for allegedly trying to buy cocaine on the streets of Paris.
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Companies
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
Qantas case a timely warning for money-spinner Transurban
The flying kangaroo’s drama is relevant for Australia’s dominant toll operator, which is returning more cash than ever to investors despite political pressure.
AMP cuts financial advice deal, stemming losses
The company will partially sell that business via transactions totalling $92.4 million, while the stock lifted 13 per cent after interim profit beat consensus.
‘A scandal of epic proportions’: why heads could roll at ANZ
This week on The Fin podcast, Jonathan Shapiro on ANZ’s bond trading scandal, whether the bank lied about its market activity to get on the deal and who should be accountable.
- Updated
- Aviation
Qantas board failed to challenge Joyce’s ‘command and control’
Qantas’ incoming chairman John Mullen said bonus practices at the airline had been problematic as the board was unable to override “the formulaic results of a compensation scheme” if there was a major scandal.
‘I’ll make you more money’: Inside Seymour’s CEO pitch
Lobbying was done in the office, over drinks, during the weekend. And like any good election, the voters’ concern was what was in it for them.
Pacific Smiles shares tumble as $327m buyout plan fails
Kingmaker Dr Alex Abrahams, a co-founder of dentistry group Pacific Smiles, voted his 9.5 per cent stake against the Crescent Capital offer, helping to kill it.
Big discounting and store closures hit Myer’s bottom line
The department store has warned it will record a fall in sales when it publishes its financial results next month, as lower customer spending takes its toll.
Companies in the News
Search companies
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Markets
Here’s how this climate fund smashed the market
Munro Partners portfolio manager James Tsinidis talks about the power crunch in the US, how Nvidia can double its earnings and names a small cap that he thinks is too cheap.
ASX falls as miners weigh; AMP shares soar 13pc
Shares lower at the closing bell; AMP’s profit rises; former Qantas boss Alan Joyce to lose more than $9 million in bonuses; Myer warns on profit; iron ore falls below $US100. Follow updates here.
New signs of weakness in US economy, as consumers halt spending
Disney theme parks, Airbnb home rentals and Hilton hotels are among the latest companies seeing weaker consumer demand.
Investors warn global rout may have not gone ‘far enough’
Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Asset Management and Capitol Group warn that volatility in the market is likely to persist after Monday’s brutal sell-off.
Why the market doesn’t believe the RBA on rates
Despite the surprisingly strong hawkish rhetoric from the Reserve Bank this week, bond traders (and some economists) aren’t buying it.
Opinion
Indispensable Joyce became excess liability for Qantas
That the former CEO stayed on long enough for hubris to set sad is reality behind an often striking success story.
Editorial
RBA returns serve on inflation
Why the RBA disagrees with the Albanese government on inflation.
Columnist
Albanese should call out the Greens on antisemitism
The PM is correct that “words matter”. So he should stop talking in code about the elevated terror threat.
Columnist
Next AUSMIN needs to turn alignment into outcomes
This year’s ministerial consultations moved away from defence announcements. But progress on many key initiatives is yet to deliver tangible results.
Defence expert
The big risk in Kamala Harris’ surprise choice for VP
Tim Walz’s down-to-earth language was transformed into the equivalent of a magic wand, but there’s a risk in overlooking Josh Shapiro in a must-win state.
Columnist
British riots show importance of managing migration
Australia can credit its overall success as a migrant nation on having got its immigration policy broadly right, and thereby avoiding an anti-immigration populist backlash.
Editorial
Reports
Cybersecurity and AI
The federal government lays out plans to help boost the nation’s cyber defences, while experts outline steps to stay safe.
Politics
‘I’ve had a gutful’ of factional squabbles: SA Liberal leader quits
The leader of the Liberal Party in South Australia, David Speirs, has angrily criticised internal factional squabbles as he resigned
- Analysis
- Government Observed
Hybrid working mishmash for 1.7m government workers across Australia
The NSW government’s push for public servants to work from their offices has left a jumble of work arrangements for the nation’s largest employers.
Rising costs hit Mirvac margins, new homes
Property developer Mirvac blamed the steep rise in labour and material costs for halving its profit margins on some residential projects, triggering a 13 per cent fall in operating earnings this year.
Voice architect fears Indigenous policy ‘deja vu’ trap
Uluru Dialogue co-chairwoman Pat Anderson warned Labor not to throw its promise of a Makarrata commission “out with the referendum bathwater”.
Labor working ‘arm-in-arm’ with RBA on inflation, Albanese insists
The prime minister has pushed back on claims that federal government spending is making it harder for the Reserve Bank to tame inflation.
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World
Harris seeks centre-left sweet spot in US election battle
The Democratic candidate has dropped her left-wing policies from her failed 2020 presidential campaign.
Britain issues alert for Iran, Lebanon airspace as risks rise
Egypt issued a similar warning, as Western and Arab nations are seeking to head off a major regional conflict in the Middle East.
- Analysis
- Inside China
Bad news for Australia: China’s steel crisis is set to deepen
Prices are tumbling, profits are dwindling, and there’s little relief on offer from a government focused on retooling China’s economy for the long term.
- Opinion
- US election
Why Harris’ new running mate is no J.D. Vance
Tim Walz is a blue-collar moderate who branded the Trump-Vance ticket “weird”. His working-class appeal can help Democrats prevail in swing states.
Blackstone’s boss has a multimillion-dollar newt problem
Stephen Schwarzman has told UK chancellor Rachel Reeves of how renovations on his $155 million country estate have been derailed by the small animal.
Property
- Updated
- Earnings season
Building cost rises create horror year for Mirvac
One of the country’s largest property developers says profit margins on some big apartment projects have halved, pushing earnings significantly lower this year.
How this Brisbane couple added a sea change to their downsizing
Susie and Glenn Molloy wanted to live close to the water after one of their parents passed away, so they moved to a duplex near Port Stephens in NSW.
Sydney’s tallest tower to test battered office market
The Japanese property giant is seeking around $600 million for its 30 per cent stake, which would value the entire Salesforce Tower at $2 billion.
- Exclusive
- Luxury property
Vacant Vaucluse mansion asking $30m
In Sydney’s Vaucluse, an 1890s manor, sitting on more than 2000 square metres, has hit the market guiding $30 million.
Federal buybacks in Murray-Darling Basin to stem fall in water prices
The Commonwealth’s plan to buy back 70 gigalitres of water entitlements in the southern Murray-Darling Basin has already lifted water prices in some markets.
Wealth
Help! My parents want to invite 20 of their friends to our wedding
What to do when mum and dad help out financially but expand the guest list beyond your comfort zone.
I watched 100 fintok videos – here are five finfluencers to follow
Critics say you can’t explain complex issues in 30 seconds, but some young content creators on TikTok do it really well – particularly Australian women.
- Exclusive
- Wealth Generation
Where you can afford to buy without breaking the 30pc rule
See how suburb-level affordability across Australia’s three biggest capital cities has changed over the past three decades.
Technology
Olympics’ online trolls get taken down by AI
Athletes have previously had to turn off their phones to avoid online abuse – this year artificial intelligence is helping to keep trolls at bay.
- Exclusive
- Start-ups
‘Harder and harder’: Why Canva’s $370m AI bet said yes
AI dollars can be “fleeting” and competing with big players can cost hundreds of millions, setting the scene for Leonardo’s sale to Canva.
- Analysis
- The Breakdown
Google is a monopolist, but the egg can’t be unscrambled
The company paid tens of billions of dollars to become the world’s dominant search engine. Even Microsoft couldn’t compete.
Work & Careers
High Court to test competition law on CFMEU ‘boycott’
The case will test the reach of competition laws on the CFMEU and builders when they kick non-union subcontractors from construction sites.
It’s not just the Olympics, lawyers get post-project blues too
It’s not just Olympians who wonder what’s next after years of work culminate in a dramatic conclusion. Lawyers and consultants also get post-project blues.
Life & Luxury
The three simple ways to test your fitness
How do you know if you are fit? Here are three tests to track your strength and cardiovascular fitness that can be done with little or no equipment.
- Driving With Tony Davis
- Motoring
Pagani lifts lid on its glamorous $5m hypercar
The Utopia Roadster is a rare beast, with only 130 units expected to be produced.
MrBeast’s giant game show faces safety complaints
Some of the contestants vying to win the $US5 million prize say they lacked access to food, water and medication, and competitors were injured.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Wine & spirits
Family revives its rum brand to satisfy thirst for spirits
Sydney’s Red Mill is one of three delicious – and different – new Australian rums that are a credit to their inventive distillers.
Shorts are back this summer. Here’s how to wear them
Briefs are the business for everyone this spring, and they are shorter than ever.
