Economy
CBA boss calls for spending cuts, bold reform in budget
4 March
The bosses of Australia’s largest companies have urged Treasurer Jim Chalmers to take a bold agenda to the May budget to salvage the country’s faltering international competitiveness. Speaking at the Australian Financial Review Business Summit,...[Read More]
Reserve Bank boss calls on businesses to invest smarter
11 February
The Reserve Bank governor has called on businesses to help lift Australia’s sluggish productivity growth as she tries to bring inflation under control. Facing a string of questions about the government’s role in driving up inflation at a...[Read More]
Healthy jobs market spells rate pain for borrowers
28 January
Analysts are warning mortgage holders an interest rate rise could be just weeks away, after surprisingly strong jobs figures heightened the Reserve Bank of Australia’s concerns about inflation. Forecasters were taken off guard by the resilience of...[Read More]
New year brings cheaper medicines, higher energy bills
31 December
When Australians wake up to a new year, changes to government payments and policies will impact the finances of millions of households. From Thursday, the maximum cost of medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme will be slashed from $31.60 to...[Read More]
2025: The year the world chose direction
18 December
History rarely announces itself in dramatic bursts. More often, it reveals itself through quiet turning points — moments when trends harden into realities and choices can no longer be postponed. 2025 was one of those years. It did not deliver a...[Read More]
Tax reform call as data centre boom plugs in investment
17 December
The treasurer has been urged to raise the GST, lower the capital gains discount and introduce a modest inheritance tax to fix his ailing budget as Australia’s nascent data centre boom lifts productivity hopes. In next week’s Mid-Year Economic...[Read More]
Price gouging ban will drive up costs: supermarkets
17 December
Supermarkets and retailers are angry over “excessive” regulations being imposed to stop price gouging, which they say won’t keep costs down for shoppers. The Albanese government has introduced rules to limit “excessive pricing of...[Read More]
Unchecked port profits risk entrenching cost-of-living
17 December
Higher costs may be permanently embedded for Australian consumers and businesses as port companies reap historic profits from unchecked price increases, freight operators warn. Profits for Australian stevedore companies, which load and unload...[Read More]
The gift of trust: How talking about us strengthens our business and community
4 December
Referrals mean more to us than words can easily express. When a happy client shares their experience and recommends us to a friend, colleague, or family member, it is one of the greatest compliments we can receive. We never take that trust for...[Read More]
Inflation surges as energy rebates run out of gas
26 November
Surging inflation has dashed hopes of one last rate cut and heightened expectations energy rebates will be extended. Expiring electricity subsidies helped drive up the annual consumer price index from 3.6 per cent to a 16-month high of 3.8 per cent...[Read More]
Invest or lose: Australia’s billion-dollar AI warning
26 November
Australia could miss out on a $150 billion boost to its economy if it fails to invest in artificial intelligence, including sovereign AI models, regional hubs, training and infrastructure. But decisive investments in the technology could deliver an...[Read More]
Pathway emerges for elusive EU-Australia trade deal
5 November
An elusive EU-Australia free trade agreement could soon be finalised, with possible agriculture concessions paving the way for the stalled deal to get over the line. Negotiations have twice fallen over at the final hurdle as Australia demands...[Read More]
Australia falling behind as experts call for AI urgency
15 October
Leaders in artificial intelligence warn Australia is falling behind and national productivity gains rest on embracing the technology. The sense of urgency for Australia to jump on the global AI bandwagon has not been felt for a “century or so”,...[Read More]
Appliance reliance: consumers want repairability labels
1 October
Australian consumers are not being given enough information about the expected life of appliances, research shows, and could be wasting money based on vague environmental claims. The trend is occurring despite more than four in five consumers...[Read More]
Future Fund eclipses $250b after bumper return
11 September
Australia’s Future Fund has smashed its investment target, delivering a 12.2 per cent return to send the nation’s sovereign wealth fund above $250 billion for the first time. The bumper result for 2024/25 exceeded the fund’s mandate of 6.9 per...[Read More]