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Among the sales over the week was in Elwood, Victoria, where Ray White auctioneer Greg Brydon donned VR goggles to conduct the country’s first virtual live auction.

Sticky inflation not deterring homebuyers at auction

Auction markets didn’t react to renewed interest rate hike fears as the pool of homebuyers remains big enough relative to the number of homes up for sale.

US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell will front journalist on Thursday following the central bank’s latest rate decision.

ASX to bounce as Powell prepares to walk rates ‘tightrope’

The US Federal Reserve will take centre stage again this week, when some forecasters are expecting its chairman to address an increasingly poor inflation outlook.

Elon Musk, owner of social media platform X.

Profit of $4804: how Musk’s takeover crushed Twitter in Australia

X is expected to be wound in Australia up after reporting just $3.4 million in revenue in the first half of 2023, documents reveal.

How Boomers are busting hopes for rate cuts

Macro commentator James Aitken says interest rates may have to head higher after we underestimated the increasingly powerful wealth effect, writes Jonathan Shapiro.

Banks stare down spectre of bad debts, eye $4.5b return

Analysts say banks may declare higher dividends and share buybacks over the next fortnight’s earnings season as margin pressures ease.

Why China’s spies are being caught all over Europe

A flurry of arrests this week reflect the continent’s newly toughened response to Beijing’s espionage activities and political meddling.

Tasmea helps break IPO drought after spurning private equity

Stephen Young says he held out for the thawing of the IPO market rather than commit a “breach of faith” by selling to private equity buyers.

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Edition

AFR Magazine - May

See the inner workings of the Gold Dinner charity gala, find out which Australians gave away the most money last year and don’t miss out women’s watch special.

smart investor

AFR

A child won a share of her dad’s estate – despite planning to kill him

A 75 per cent success rate in contesting wills is encouraging more family members to sue for a bigger share. Here’s how to protect your final wishes.

Dovish interest rate expectations have been eviscerated.

You heard right – the RBA could raise rates again

The Reserve Bank of Australia will likely be forced to warn that it could raise rates again.

Wealth and level of higher education are linked to longer lifespans.

Why you’ll live longer than you think (and what it means for your wealth)

Very few people die at their age of life expectancy, giving rise to financial planning’s biggest conundrum: longevity risk.

I’m an expat with shares and property. What are my tax obligations?

One of the most common mistakes expats make is not adjusting their investment strategy to minimise tax, advisers say.

How will $3m super tax work when my balance goes all over the place?

You won’t get a refund if you’ve paid the tax and your fund later loses money. But you can carry forward the loss to offset gains in later years.

Features include the ability to save articles, dark mode and real time notifications.

Get the latest business news on the go with the AFR’s new iOS app.

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Companies

Woodside’s CEO Meg O’Neill and Chairman Richard Goyder at Woodside face the press after a four hour annual shareholder meeting in Perth last Wednesday ( 24 April, 2024 Photo: Trevor Collens

Woodside caught between twin objectives on a collision course

Woodside is hoping that technology, hard work and deployment will reconcile fidelity to net-zero with growth by pumping oil and gas.

NSW wants fintechs to be part of the country’s largest bank contract

Westpac, ANZ and Citi are incumbents, but NSW Treasury wants innovative pitches to help solve issues, such as helping get payments to victims of domestic violence who may not have access to banks.

BHP boss Mike Henry faces stumping up billion of dollars more to secure take target Anglo American.

Anglo American rejects BHP’s $60b bid for copper supremacy

Anglo American investors were already cool on BHP’s offer as the race between global mining heavyweights for copper assets hots up.

Woodside chairman Richard Goyder.

Woodside looks inward after climate gambit defeated

The oil and gas producer felt the force of big super and green investors when it took a transition plan to shareholders. Now it has no choice but to do better on emissions.

Broking bad: ASIC ‘threat’ fears about Morgans revealed

The corporate cop dealt with problems brewing at leading stockbroker Morgans for three years before a public crackdown. New documents detail the scale of its concern.

CEO and former exec accused of undisclosed relationship

The board and chief executive are expected to be named in a soon-to-be-lodged legal claim by Harmers Workplace Lawyers, Super Retail said.

Jon Adgemis’ lender pushes to sell his Darlinghurst Hotel

Another lender does not want the sale to go ahead. The crisis highlights the rosy valuations of the indebted pub baron’s properties.

Companies in the News

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Markets

ECB president Christine Lagarde says price surges in Europe and the US are different, but investors are wary.

Investors bet global central banks forced to delay rate cuts

Market expectations for loosening interest rates in Europe and the UK have been pushed back, as the US grapples with a hot economy.

Market bets the RBA will raise rates by August

Traders are ascribing a more than 50 per cent chance the Reserve Bank will lift the cash rate as early as in August to stamp out inflation.

Ruslan Kogan and David Shafer.

Kogan executives handed $17.6m payday three weeks before stock crash

The online retailer disclosed earlier this month that key executives would be able to sell options back to the company without having to exchange them for shares.

Activist Elliott builds $1b Anglo American stake

The hedge fund led by Paul Singer has built a billion dollar stake in BHP target Anglo American, placing it among its 10 biggest shareholders.

BHP’s bid for Anglo casts cloud over $9b mine

BHP’s takeover proposal of rival Anglo American is throwing uncertainty over the future for Anglo’s massive fertiliser mine in England.

Opinion

Fight to the last Ukrainian

More aid is clearly a relief for Kyiv, but will it be enough to reverse the tide of the war?

James Curran

International editor

James Curran

The RBA is still threading the needle

The Reserve Bank’s next policy move is more likely to be a rate cut despite the evidence seen in the stronger than expected March inflation figures, says GSFM’s Stephen Miller.

Stephen Miller

Former advisor Paul Keating

Stephen Miller

If Musk wins high stakes global battle, X could still lose the war

A court victory in the legal stoush over Australia’s eSafety commissioner’s take-down order might invite government intervention that bolsters regulation of the social media giants.

Chalmers’ narrow budget path is now in peril

The sudden change in the interest rate outlook this week could be political dynamite for the Albanese government and the budget.

The AFR View

Editorial

The AFR View

You heard right – the RBA could raise rates again

The Reserve Bank of Australia will likely be forced to warn that it could raise rates again.

Australia’s embassy should move back to Kyiv

Most other big democracies have moved their diplomats back to the Ukrainian capital. Australia is a notable laggard.

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Politics

Defence Minister Richard Marles visits Ukrainian troops at a training facility near Lviv, near the Polish border on Saturday.

Australia unleashes another $100m of military aid to Ukraine

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles visited Ukraine to unveil the package, including drones and air-defence systems, which swings Australia behind fresh US and UK support.

The Chanticleer podcast features James Thomson and Anthony Macdonald.

Imploding Star,  Woodside battle & hot inflation, again

This week on the Chanticleer podcast, James & Anthony look at casino operator Star Entertainment’s second brush with disaster, go inside the battle over energy giant Woodside’s climate plan, and ask where rates go next after hot inflation numbers.

Federal and state governments will again stimulate the economy next year, with economists urging Treasurer Jim Chalmers to cut outlays to pre-pandemic levels.

Government spending surge to fuel sticky inflation

Monthly spending figures show the federal budget bottom-line in the nine months to March was running $4.1 billion ahead of projections from December,

Police killings spur $161m national register of firearms

More than 35 years after it was first proposed, a national database will be established to track millions of firearms around the country.

US ban on non-competes will likely ‘embolden’ Labor

A blanket ban on non-compete clauses in the United States is likely to embolden the Albanese government to go hard on regulating post-employment restraints in Australia, some legal experts have predicted.

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World

Police arrest protesters on Washington University’s campus in St. Louis.

US universities crack down as antisemitism rises

Some universities moved to shut down encampments to protest against the Israel-Hamas war after reports of antisemitic activity.

Admiral John Aquilino is preparing to hand over US forces in the Indo-Pacific region.

US commander says China pursuing ‘boiling frog’ strategy

Retiring Admiral John Aquilino has accused Beijing of gradually raising pressure in the South China Sea.

South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol suffered a blow at recent elections.

South Korea’s president faces revolt over US security ties

After his party’s loss in parliamentary elections, Yoon Suk-yeol is under pressure over his pivot to a stronger US alliance and perceived anti-China policies.

Russian missiles pound Ukraine’s battered power plants

Russian missiles again targeted the nation’s strained energy grid in a broad and complex attack, as Defence Minister Richard Marles pledged $100 million in aid.

‘Built and destroyed’: Wall Street reels from ban on non-compete pacts

Financial companies are scrambling to rework contracts and tie down personnel after the US Federal Trade Commission’s decision last week.

Property

Australia is unlikely to meet its target of 1.2m new homes over the next five years.

High costs to delay housing supply until end of decade: AFR survey

It’s a case of simple economics choking off the desperately needed supply of new housing as building costs rise faster than house price growth.

Richard Pappas, managing director of Celsius Property Group.

The conundrum behind Perth’s housing price surge

There’s plenty of demand and many projects approved, but sky-high construction costs have left developers asking for more government money.

morgyn bostock

Why this apartment owner ditched real estate agents

Morgyn Bostock chose not to use an agent when she sold her home - and would happily do so again.

Over-50s lifestyle boss asking $30m for Byron retreat

GemLife CEO Adrian Puljich and wife Jessica list Byron estate for $30m, while mental health advocate Hugh van Cuylenburg and Penny Moody buy in Bangalow.

‘Get out now’: empty stores haunt iconic Sydney shopping streets

Retailers on Paddington’s Oxford Street and Newtown’s King Street are feeling the pinch of high operating costs and declining consumer confidence.

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Wealth

For those fortunate enough to have good health and money, semi-retirement is an increasingly popular option.

Why more Australians are choosing semi-retirement

Fusing the parts of work you still enjoy with hobbies, travel and passion projects is the dream for many. Here’s how to make a go of it

Why you’ll live longer than you think (and what it means for your wealth)

Very few people die at their age of life expectancy, giving rise to financial planning’s biggest conundrum: longevity risk.

A child won a share of her dad’s estate – despite planning to kill him

A 75 per cent success rate in contesting wills is encouraging more family members to sue for a bigger share. Here’s how to protect your final wishes.

Technology

Canada and Google have reached a deal to keep news stories in search results following a lengthy dispute.

Alphabet surges past $3 trillion, announces first-ever dividend

Google’s parent company rose nearly 16 per cent after first-quarter earnings beat expectations and a $US70 billion stock buyback was approved.

TikTok Australia general manger Brett Armstrong has rejected calls for the platform to be banned.

TikTok Australia makes its first stand after US ban laws pass

The US congress passed a bill on Wednesday requiring TikTok to be sold within a year or be banned in the country.

‘Safe room for terrorists’: ASIO warns big tech on encryption

Federal spy and crime chiefs will demand access to social messaging systems that allow terrorists, violent extremists and child abusers to operate with impunity.

Work & Careers

Online testing for NAPLAN means schools start receiving results this week, just four weeks after the tests were taken.

NAPLAN reports arrive eight weeks early, giving more time to intervene

Detailed reports on how schools, classes and individual students performed in this year’s NAPLAN tests will start landing on Monday.

Mass lay-offs at regional uni as international enrolments slump 90pc

Federation University in Victoria could be the canary in the coal mine as its international student enrolments dive.

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Life & Luxury

Arthur Streeton’s Sunlight at the Camp is estimated to sell for between $1 million and $1.5 million.

Streeton stuns at $10m art auction

Arthur Streeton’s historic scene took top honours, but works by Bronwyn Oliver and Nicholas Harding were the big surprises.

Tesla Cybertruck spotted in Sydney

The electric ute has been cruising tourist sites before going on display amid Elon Musk’s ‘censorship’ battle with Australia.

When starting from scratch, plan to spend six months training, experts say.

How to train for a marathon no matter how fit you are

It might take you a year to prepare for, but even the complete novice can work their way up to do it. Here are some tips for where to start.

Peter Morgan at the premier of his play Patriots on Monday.

This new play shows how oligarchs helped Putin – but ended up losing

Peter Morgan’s new work follows Vladimir Putin’s rise to the presidency and the Russian high-fliers who mistakenly thought he’d be their puppet.

A simple recipe for baba ghanoush with a twist

A desire to dig deeper into Lebanese cuisine is redefining Gerard’s Bistro in Brisbane.

From the gallery