‘It’s all pervasive’: ATO’s blitz on family trusts threatens financial ruin
Wealthy families are being hit with bills for unpaid taxes and penalties worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Think you pay too much tax? Not according to this measure
Australia has the fourth-highest income tax in the world, according to the OECD. But adding in other employment taxes puts us is in the middle of the pack.
Who is the woman fronting Clive Palmer’s viral campaign blitz?
Clive Palmer has poured millions into making Trumpet of Patriots leader Suellen Wrightson a household face. But little is known about her.
The RBA’s rate cuts are coming, but hold the avalanche
There’s one data point between Australians and a May rate cut and economists are tipping it should be fine. But what happens next is ripe for debate.
China’s export orders plunge in alarming first look at tariff damage
China’s factory activity slipped into the worst contraction since December 2023, revealing an early impact of Donald Trump’s trade war.
Accolade Wines axes dozens of brands after Pernod Ricard merger
The company, now rebranded as Vinarchy, is scrapping labels to focus its investment in higher profile wines including Hardys, Jacob’s Creek and Campo Viejo.
The numbers headache for Canberra and Washington
Jim Chalmers and US counterpart Scott Bessent have a few things in common – the threat of tariffs, the risk of recession and a budget that doesn’t add up, writes Jennifer Hewett.
Find out everything you need to know before Australians go to the polls on May 3.
Federal election
Regulate crypto to ‘protect consumers, support innovation’
John O’Loghlen, regional managing director of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, says the next government needs to prioritise regulating digital assets.
‘Weaponised’: Woman who filmed Mandarin-speaking Ryan volunteers speaks out
The woman who filmed a video of Monique Ryan volunteers says the media has weaponised it; Labor fails to crash Peter Dutton’s yum cha lunch. See how the day unfolded here.
Voting Green may be the greatest act of self-harm by a generation ever
Under the Greens’ housing proposal, rent could rise by an average $83 a week, on top of the rent increases likely to happen anyway.
Meet the ex-Deloitte consultant who has driven 85,000km to win a seat
Tom Venning has a strong chance to be the new MP for a sprawling SA seat after exiting the corporate world with a hope to bring a back-to-basics economic approach.
Menu shows Albanese’s Pancakes on the Rocks claim doesn’t stack up
The restaurant where the prime minister worked in his student days has imposed public holiday surcharge since at least 1979 – making his claims otherwise seem like waffle.
Companies
The ASX’s dual-listed giants are increasingly disappearing overseas
From Westfield to Amcor, investors fret that secondary local listings are “like a pre-paid funeral” and will inevitably go the way of Singtel with a delisting.
Billionaire Raphael Geminder faces backlash on Pact delisting plan
Minority shareholders including activist investor Jeremy Raper, a former Goldman Sachs banker, oppose the plan to remove the packaging group from the ASX boards
Aldi shows its discount appeal with sharp rise in profit
The German discount supermarket chain has paid out billions of dollars in dividends to its parent group Hofer KG in Austria.
Star’s earnings outlook worsens as it prepares for new owner Bally’s
The casino group has plunged to a $21 million EBITDA loss for the March quarter, and says uncertainty remains about its ability to operate as a going concern.
Coles sees healthy sales growth as shoppers flock to home brands
Supermarket giant maintains its advantage over rival Woolworths, with group sales up 3.4 per cent in the third quarter to $10.4 billion.
Origin makes further $175m payment for wind farm, as LNG revenues slump
Investors and analysts are looking beyond falling revenue from Origin’s stake in Australian Pacific LNG to its renewable energy and Octopus investments.
Woodside to join ranks of global gas giants with $27b green light
The ASX-listed developer’s board has agreed to proceed with a major project in Louisiana that could mean it produces more than 5 per cent of the world’s LNG.
Markets
Strategists warn ASX’s latest rebound is no sign of recovery
Pundits say the ASX 200 recovery to a two-month high is likely just hedge funds covering their short positions rather than a rally based on fundamentals.
Bond market too optimistic about rapid rate cuts, investors warn
Benign inflation data has boosted bets of a rate cut next month, but fund managers caution against the aggressive easing path implied by markets.
Big super is questioning its exposure to Wall Street
Regulatory filings show the country’s biggest retirement funds made billion dollar bets on American technology giants ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
ASX hits first monthly gain since January; CBA nears record
Shares edge higher; CPI tops forecasts; US futures lower; Newmont down 2pc as gold price dwindles; CBA nears $168-a-share record; Star’s losses balloon.
Global investors pile into ASX giants amid Wall Street exodus
Fund managers and strategists say the country’s largest listed companies are being seen as safe havens amid uncertainty about the outlook for US markets.
Opinion
Why your super is the government’s next cash cow
The tax-by-stealth raid needs to be exposed for what it is: a morally dubious cash grab to paper over the government’s own fiscal mismanagement.
Editorial
Is there a case for a jumbo-sized interest rate cut next month?
Given the cash rate is now 4.10 per cent, this suggests that the RBA board could deliver a 50 basis point cut in May and still leave policy mildly restrictive.
Economist
Bungled US supremacy quest may create investor opportunities elsewhere
Global investors now have a viable alternative to simply parking their savings in the US.
Contributor
Labor’s missing $8b for housing makes a mockery of budget
More than 80 per cent of the $10 billion that the government committed to build 100,000 homes for first buyers was nowhere to be seen in its election costings.
Economics editor
Labor’s tax on unrealised gains could wreck your retirement
This new tax warrants rigorous scrutiny and a more comprehensive reassessment before it inflicts lasting damage on our nation’s financial well-being.
Investment manager
Carney shows dignity matters most in combating Trump
Famously commonsensical Canada reminds us that some things – patriotism, dignity – can be valued higher than short-term economic growth.
Columnist
Politics
Albanese denies he’ll revive the Voice
The prime minister has ruled out revisiting the Voice after Penny Wong described it as unfinished business.
Inside this Bollywood star’s rugby union dream
Bollywood star Rahul Bose grew up playing rugby. Now he’s leveraging Australia to build a new rugby competition that he thinks can transform the sport.
Hotel price surge for Magic Round is a warning for Brisbane Olympics
The NRL’s Magic Round and even the Brisbane Truck Show trigger hotel room shortages in the city, and developers warn something needs to change fast.
Inflation dip opens door to post-election rate cut
The RBA’s preferred measure of underlying inflation has dipped below 3 per cent for the first time in three years, opening the door to a likely interest rate cut for the second time this year.
The two worrying trends revealed in Australia’s AAA warning
The next federal government should be thinking about ways to get control of the financially imprudent behaviour of the state and territory governments.
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World
Why Spain’s unprecedented power collapse could happen again
The massive outage this week raises concerns about the resilience of infrastructure in Europe and implications for moves away from fossil fuels.
Mark Carney won, but there will be no honeymoon
The newly elected PM told Canadians he was the right person to stand up to Donald Trump and boost the country’s lacklustre economy. Now he has to do it.
Trump celebrates 100 days in office by bashing Powell, touting tariffs
The president criticised the Fed chairman despite assurances earlier this month that he did not plan to fire him over interest rate cuts.
The five seconds that plunged Spain into darkness
A key point of concern is the role that renewable power played in the outage with Spain a leader in rolling out wind and solar generation.
Trump calls Bezos after reports Amazon would show tariff charges on its site
The retailer spent a chaotic morning denying a report that it planned to display prices showing the tariffs’ impact on Amazon.com.
Property
Property developer buys Tania Buckley’s Toorak mansion for $13.1m
Property developer Eli Goldfinger and his wife Kerry snagged a deal on the home, paying $3.8 million less than the bottom of its original price range.
Billionaire Harry Stamoulis sizes up Collins Street tower
Cash-up private players such as the Rich Lister Stamoulis family are bargain-hunting for deals in Melbourne’s soft office market.
Millennial fashionista buys $48.5m Bellevue Hill pad
She began by investing $200 in a fashion start-up with a university friend. Now, Meshki co-founder Natalie Khoei has just bought a $48.5m Bellevue Hill home.
Stockland says new home prices have risen 17pc from a year ago
The developer, along with its listed rival Mirvac, is setting itself up for an improvement in the east coast-dominated new housing market.
Packer takes $39m haircut on LA mansion sale
Rich Lister James Packer has sold his Beverly Hill mansion for $US60 million ($93.57 million) after snapping up another California estate.
Wealth
Bungled US supremacy quest may create investor opportunities elsewhere
Global investors now have a viable alternative to simply parking their savings in the US.
My husband died at age 37. Here’s how I survived financially
Last-minute changes to super and estate planning allowed Lisa Chew to manage the family finances once her husband was gone.
Philanthropy 50: Which Australians gave away the most?
The transfer of wealth to the next generation, plus some notable relationship break-ups, is putting more women in charge of giving.
Technology
The tech gifts your mum truly wants for Mother’s Day
If the mother in your life is anything like the mums we know, what she wants is to escape.
Your iPhone is a target for thieves. Do this to help protect your data
Taking a few precautions, you can dramatically reduce the fallout that comes with a lost or stolen handset.
StrongRoom buyer speaks out as founders’ credit card records subpoenaed
Subpoenas have been issued to two financial institutions to produce all documents affiliated with accounts held by StrongRoom’s co-founders since January 2022.
Work & Careers
The CEO who doesn’t look at her phone until she gets to the office
Jaana Quaintance-James, the CEO of the Australian Fashion Council makes it a point to stay away from her phone when walking to and from work, and reading.
Absent union leader on $170k taken off paid leave
The wharfies union has taken Queensland boss Jason Miners off unlimited paid personal leave.
Life & Luxury
20 business types + a $1m super investment = an unusual art collective
Twenty top-tier business and legal names invested $1 million in art from Asia and the Pacific. Now they are selling.
Cops come knocking after NIDA graduates pull no punches as impresarios
Rather than wait for the phone to ring, four young Sydney actors and their teacher formed their own production company to make theatre on their terms.
What your height says about your health
Younger generations have been getting taller as living standards have shifted, childhood starvation disappeared, and common infectious diseases were eradicated.
Make like Tilda Swinton at this exquisite Milan villa
From on-screen crush to real-life museum – welcome to Villa Necchi Campiglio, a window into 1930s high society.
High-powered Sydney couple find new success importing wines
A lawyer and a project manager paused their careers to champion Europe’s best female wine producers.
