Australians $14,500 poorer than Costello forecast in 2002
Ahead of Jim Chalmers’ 2026 Intergenerational Report, an analysis exposes the gap between the Australia Peter Costello forecast in 2002 and the economy today.
Government told to push Trump, US AI giants on security access
Australia’s top security experts say AI giants should be made to share their latest models with local authorities as a condition of training them in data centres here.
David Jones battles to keep luxury brands amid broader supplier woes
The department store’s chief executive Erica Berchtold says the retailer is moving from long-term space for some labels to pop-ups and “trunk shows”.
Australia’s most powerful dealmakers in 2026
Artificial intelligence may be moving fast but it is the teams running traditional deals who are keeping the lights on.
Ukraine launches biggest Moscow drone attack as Russia votes
Iran warns against new escalation by US and allies; Trump says planned Washington arch would be ‘military complex’. Follow live updates.
Albanese names former Murdoch executive as consul-general in New York
The prime minister has defended his decision to appoint Siobhan McKenna to replace Heather Ridout when her term expires at the end of this year.
ASX to resume sell-off as traders eye three RBA rate rises
Futures indicate the Australian sharemarket will drop 0.7 per cent on Monday as investors position for an aggressive tightening cycle by the central bank.
Swedish buyout giant EQT lobs improved takeover bid at Perpetual
EQT emerged as a suitor in controversial circumstances on July 1 when a share price surge prompted the board to disclose a $21.64 bid.
Leaked NSW inquiry says PEXA and banks deliberately hinder competition
The findings of the parliamentary review come as the company’s investors push the state’s pricing tribunal to reconsider a proposal to force down prices.
Chalmers faces budget shock as $165b cheap COVID-19 debt falls due
Borrowing inked at a bargain rate of 0.5 per cent will be refinanced at above 5 per cent to hit taxpayers with an $8.5 billion annual interest bill.
The chooks discuss whether an AI apocalypse is likely, go inside Firmus’ IPO plans and figure out what cheap Ozempic might mean for the economy.
The $50b deal everyone’s talking about and will AI really kill us all?
Companies
An Australian fashion empire collapses in a mess of feuding and debt
Facing a wave of social media-powered new rivals, family feuding and an impatient international backer, Cue Clothing called in administrators last week.
Ramsay warns hospital upgrades at risk if profits stay squeezed
In research that will reignite a long dispute between insurers and hospital providers over funding, the hospital giant says “system-wide” action is needed.
BYD slashes EV prices despite Beijing’s warning to avoid price war
The car-making giant’s Australian head said that the reduction in the cost of the Atto 1 was simply a normal “financial campaign”.
Nearmap’s PE owner ponders multibillion-dollar return to the ASX
Thoma Bravo bought the aerial imaging software company off the sharemarket in 2022 and has been discussing its exit options with prospective advisers.
IAG dumps KPMG from $11.6m audit after more than two decades
The insurance giant will search for a new auditor after having the accountancy firm check its books since it listed in 2000.
IAG and Credit Suisse settle monster Greensill Capital collapse suit
The Swiss bank, now owned by UBS, reached an 11th-hour agreement with insurer IAG, avoiding what could have been Australia’s largest commercial trial yet.
Bathla administrators find $700m hole in failed developer’s accounts
Teneo has secured a long extension to its operation of the collapsed real estate business, arguing documentation has not been updated for more than a year.
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Markets
An Australian fund manager finds redemption in the copper boom
AI, geopolitics and years of underinvestment are reshaping commodity markets – and Terra Capital’s Jeremy Bond is betting the new cycle has only just begun.
ASX unveils new bond repo benchmark as secured financing market booms
The exchange operator will track and report interest rates, a sector of the money market that has swelled to over $400 billion.
AI could change the speed limit of economic growth
The fundamental rules of the macroeconomic game are changing, and investors who stubbornly rely on the old playbook risk being left completely behind.
S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite edge higher; oil slips; bitcoin rallies
Shares swung in New York in their final session of the week as bond yields turned higher in line with expectations for more interest rate rises this year.
Even a $50b tech float can’t save Australia’s vanishing sharemarket
Firmus is heading towards the ASX in the biggest float in a generation, and yet a massive wave of M&A is quickly running down options for equities investors.
Opinion
P for productivity is Chalmers’ intergenerational problem
Boosting Australia’s stagnant productivity as a matter of urgency is far more important than making the IRG modelling add up.
Editorial
Welcome to the era of the outsourced CIO
Hiring an external chief investment officer is a trend that is gaining traction overseas, but it does not come without risks.
Associate editor
A break in the global bond market is coming for Australian home prices
Forget a sharp fall. A profound change is more likely to manifest in the form of stalled housing value growth over the next decade.
Senior reporter
How migration became a temporary labour supply problem for Labor
In finally seeking to rein in temporary migrant numbers, the government should not over-correct in its desire to defuse the political heat over immigration.
Economist
There’s finally momentum to fix Australia’s health care system
Demand is rising, public hospitals are increasingly overburdened, and patients are looking for greater choice, clarity and access to care.
Frontier AI risk doesn’t mean tearing up the cybersecurity script
The best positioned organisations will be those that maintain disciplined governance, invest in appropriate resilience and readiness, and get the basics right.
Politics
‘We listen. We partner. We protect’: PM’s UN Security Council pitch
Anthony Albanese has arrived in New York for annual summit and will lobby other leaders this week, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Labor picks a path through farmland to bring offshore wind to Victoria
The transmission line required to link offshore wind to the Victorian grid has progressed despite a setback for a similar project on the other side of the state.
Albanese backs global AI guardrails as Trump vows to fight regulation
The PM said Australia would join like-minded nations in pushing for a global framework to keep “humans in control” of AI, putting him at odds with Donald Trump.
In Dubbo, the migration reality is a far cry from the political debate
Big regional employers rely heavily on foreign workers and scoff at One Nation’s view that unemployed Australians can take their place.
‘We need to shape AI, rather than allow it to shape us’: Albanese
The prime minister pushed Australia’s role in shaping AI and online safety as he arrived in the US for a week of talks.
World
‘Two strongmen in the playground’: What to watch when Trump meets Xi
The globe’s two greatest strategic rivals are not expected to rock the boat, but here’s what they want on trade, global conflicts, AI and next steps.
Facing mounting losses, Trump kicks a familiar foe
The president’s ban of three media outlets from the White House fits a pattern of using the apparatus of government to crack down on his perceived enemies.
‘We won two world wars’: Billionaires lament ‘broken Britain’
Manchester United part-owner Jim Ratcliffe has again slammed immigration policy, while UK billionaire Fred Done said he would “not wish to be reborn” in Britain.
‘I’m so sorry’: Ed Sheeran in tears on stage over Palestine row
The star singer opened his solo concert with comments about Gaza, after his American tour was thrown into chaos for dropping pro-Palestinian rapper Macklemore.
‘Spectacular defeat’: Trump mocked for ‘status quo’ Greenland deal
The US president hailed the historic arrangement that gives US control of the strategic territory, but Danish and Greenland leaders say they’re fine with it.
Property
Sydney cattle farm for sale with $700m price tag
Agricultural company Garfield Pastoral is putting up for sale 737 hectares of land in Marsden Park that is now part of a future employment precinct.
The chance meeting that linked Mary Fairfax to a pub empire
Bruce Solomon’s son, Elliot, is controlling the hospitality business his father founded in the ’80s, Solotel, carrying on the family’s lineage of publicans.
LJ Hooker heir wants to tap suburban landbank his grandfather created
Janusz Hooker says he has the product and capital to resolve Australia’s housing shortage. All he needs is land.
Buyers take advantage of falling prices even as rates threat grows
In the biggest auction markets of Melbourne and Sydney buyers who see prices have weakened are competing for homes, even at a time of economic uncertainty.
Liberman-backed consortium endorses struggling Melbourne office market
Moose Toys’ Paul Solomon and Square Peg Capital’s Justin Liberman are buying up Melbourne’s office buildings as property institutions steer clear.
Wealth
Two couples retire with $4.5m in super – why one ends up better off
An uneven superannuation balance can erode your retirement tax perks – and the decades leading up to the end of work are the critical time to act.
79,000 people just joined the ‘emerging’ wealthy: where do you rank?
Crossing this threshold, which defines you as high net worth, is a critical point when compounding investment returns start outpacing regular salary savings.
Big super loses $47b to SMSFs over four years
Gen X and Millennials are driving a massive shift into self-managed super, pushing the sector to a record 680,000 funds holding more than $1.1 trillion.
Technology
Self-service laundry boom powers fintech Tangerpay to $70m valuation
An explosion of social-media-led interest in running laundromats has turned into major growth at the payment provider, which is merging with a British rival.
‘You can’t eat data’: Cautious local welcome to Anthropic plan
Queensland’s Western Downs region has been thrust into the spotlight after Anthropic chose it for its first Australian data centre deal.
Court warns Blackmagic to stay neutral in co-founder legal stoush
Two of the three co-founders of the video technology giant are being sued by their former business partner, who says he is being blocked from selling out.
Work & Careers
‘Barring organised crime, I probably would’ve done anything with him’
Jae Lubberink says the at times controversial strategies employed by Eucalyptus under founder Tim Doyle drew him to the business.
Caterer to Sydney’s super rich is happy to mix it with the masses
The Blonde Butler’s client list includes Firmus co-founder Oliver Curtis and his PR guru wife, Roxy Jacenko, but he’s making more money from boxed catering.
Life & Luxury
Lexus’ new $84k flagship electric sedan goes all in on quiet luxury
Bucking the market lean towards SUVs, this sleek, futuristic yet refined machine marries high-tech specs with elegant design.
Why 30g of protein in one meal isn’t your upper limit
For decades, many of us have mistakenly believed our body can absorb no more than 30 grams of protein at a time. We now know we can absorb much more than that.
The world’s best airlines of the year, as voted by you
Singapore Airlines is the overall winner of Skytrax’s 2026 “Oscars of the aviation industry”.
MobLand’s second season is pure television crack
Guy Ritchie directs a stacked cast led by Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren in a soap-opera-meets-gangster franchise with polish.
Four hours of Musk is oddly compelling
The Alex Gibney documentary presents a power-hungry megalomaniacal con man with a god complex. The Tesla and SpaceX chief is not happy about it.
