Labor’s bold $1b bet on Aussie quantum start-up
Australia will invest $940 million in Silicon Valley start-up PsiQuantum in a major bet that it will build the world’s first commercially useful quantum computer.
Bonza flights cancelled as aircraft repossessed
Corporate insolvency firm Korda Mentha was appointed to look at the discount air;line’s operations just weeks ago.
- Live
- Markets Live
ASX to edge up; CBA delays RBA rate cut; Origin gas revenue drops
Shares to open firm; Wall Street up as Tesla surges 15 per cent; BHP confirms $38b deal with Brazil; Bapcorp new CEO quits; Bonza in trouble. Follow updates here.
- Live
- Need to Know
Australia ‘cannot be left behind’ on quantum: Husic
Israel appears to soften stance in ceasefire talks; Triple zero access to be strengthened after Optus outage; BHP offers to settle Samarco dam claims. Follow updates here.
- Exclusive
- CFMEU
Police called to ‘keep the peace’ in CFMEU showdown
A stand-off between a crowd of CFMEU representatives and security guards at a Queensland project allegedly involved unionists jumping fences to get on to site.
Healthscope in $919m writedown as hospital costs jump
One of Australia’s biggest private hospital operators plunged into the red as wage and medical supplies costs climbed, and it booked a big impairment.
Super Retail legal action expands to at least four staff
Lawyers acting for employees say they offered to settle confidentially for less than a third of the $30 million to $50 million sought.
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tuesday tech
- Exclusive
- Start-ups
Aussie tech pushes into China, Taiwan despite geopolitical risks
Canva co-founder Cliff Obrecht has warned start-ups China should not be their first market but says it has massive rewards for companies that can make it there.
- Exclusive
- Electric vehicles
Controversial SPAC listing hobbled Tritium
The charging company’s leaders were preparing for a potential collapse before Christmas as it failed to get state government cash.
- Exclusive
- Venture capital
VCs are banking on Canva staff cash, but they’re buying houses instead
While most staff say they plan to put the money towards real estate, an investing program just for Canva staff already has the interest of more than 100 people.
- Exclusive
- Political lobbying
Former Afterpay policy exec named Tech Council CEO
Damian Kassabgi, a former adviser to prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, is the new boss of the most prominent tech industry association.
Snapchat going backwards in Australia
Elon Musk’s takeover crushed Twitter, but Snap is still a fraction of the size of the dominant Meta-Google online advertising machine.
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Companies
BHP, Vale offer $38b to settle Samarco dam disaster claims
The two mining giants have made a fresh proposal to try and finalise their protracted compensation talks with the Brazilian authorities over the 2015 disaster.
Board ousts Star chairman as inquiry blowback continues
David Foster will be replaced by director Anne Ward. She was one of the few directors who wanted former CEO Robbie Cooke to step down in December.
BHP goes big game hunting on the African savannah
BHP and Anglo American are undisputed industrial champions in their home countries. The vast gap between them says a lot about Australia and South Africa.
- Opinion
- Chanticleer
How TPG and Optus went from enemies to frenemies
Just 14 months ago, TPG and Optus apparently hated each other’s guts. But their new regional mobile networking sharing deal shows commercial logic has prevailed.
Perpetual inches closer to KKR deal
The wealth manager is one step closer to breaking up the business after it confirmed talks with KKR that would leave Perpetual solely with asset management.
Pact Group hit by Qenos fallout as Rich Lister circles
Rich Lister Raphael Geminder extended his buyout offer 12 times for packaging group Pact, a large customer of the failed Qenos plastics resins business.
Coal mine methane twice official disclosures: Sims
Australia’s open cut coal mines could be emitting twice as much methane as official disclosures suggest, casting doubt on national carbon emissions data.
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Markets
RBA’s next move will still be a rate cut, say investors
Market pundits argue that interest rates are still going down, not up, because inflation is declining, albeit at a slower pace than many had expected.
What happened overnight? Wall Street picked up with Fed in focus
Australian shares were set to open flat after US stocks rose as traders looked ahead to the US Federal Reserve’s rates decision meeting this week.
Stocks trade for 390 minutes a day. But only the final 10 might matter
Assets in passive equity funds have surged to more than $US11.5 trillion in the US alone - pushing more of trading to the closing minutes of the equities session.
Perpetual inches closer to KKR deal
The wealth manager is one step closer to breaking up the business after it confirmed talks with KKR that would leave Perpetual solely with asset management.
Fed rate cut debate shifts from when toward if on sticky inflation
US policymakers are widely expected to hold rates steady at a more than two-decade high this week, so much of the focus will be on any pivot from the Fed chairman.
Opinion
Labor green lights toxic bully-boys of the CFMEU
The political protection racket the modern ALP is running for the toxic behaviour of the CFMEU, which would be condemned in any other setting, is disgraceful.
Editorial
Battered from all sides, China needs new solutions
Mindful of the inspiration deficit that ultimately brought the East Asian growth miracle crashing down, Chinese policymakers must seize the moment.
Asia watcher
Albanese confronts domestic violence crisis
Women are angry, and the prime minister is dodging criticism even as he calls an emergency meeting of national cabinet on domestic violence.
Columnist
Politicians alone cannot stop violence against women
Malcolm Turnbull best summed up the challenge a decade ago when he sought to address domestic violence. The challenge for Anthony Albanese is little different.
Political editor
RBA must ignore the band of economists pushing a rate rise
The Reserve Bank should not be firing up its interest rate models on the strength of inflation that is now steadily dropping into target range.
Former Labor minister and economist
Australia’s last-mile inflation looks like the last 10 miles
The Albanese government took power promising to increase wages. It was a risky gamble that is not paying off.
Economics professor
Politics
Government baulks at hard caps on foreign student numbers
The Albanese government is shying away from a Canadian-style hard cap on foreign student numbers and will opt for more nuanced measures to control migration.
Budget spending cuts must ‘take heat off’ interest rates
To limit the RBA’s interest rate rises, tens of billions of dollars in federal and state government expenditure must be unwound, economists say.
Union push for 9pc gender-based pay rise risks inflation: employers
Employers have lashed a landmark union push to apply gender pay principles to this year’s minimum wage increase.
- Exclusive
- Electricity
Former Labor leader to chair Victoria’s SEC
Simon Corbell, a former ACT deputy chief minister, will chair Victoria’s revised State Electricity Commission, after its advisory board was disbanded.
PM flags tougher treatment of men who harm women
Bail law reform and tougher penalties for men who engage in violence against women are set to be considered at this week’s national cabinet meeting.
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World
Israel appears to soften stance on Gaza ceasefire deal
Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has accepted the latest proposal from mediators that increases the chance of a deal with Hamas.
Solomon Islands PM steps down after elections
Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare formed close ties with China during his terms in power and said he had been vilified for it.
EU would need 50pc tariffs to curb imports of Chinese EV
Researchers at the Rhodium Group say any punitive action arising from a blockbuster anti-subsidy investigation is likely to be too timid to deter Chinese car makers.
Scotland leader quits after coalition power play backfires
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf had pulled out of coalition with the Greens - a move that has triggered political chaos.
China set to launch high-stakes mission to moon’s ‘hidden’ side
China has made leaps forward in its lunar exploration, narrowing the technological chasm with the United States and Russia.
Property
Stockland says interest rates key to further market improvement
The country’s largest listed diversified developer said sales picked up in the March quarter, but lower borrowing costs were needed for the housing market to pick up.
Property investors spooked by renewed talk of rates rise
Having recently returned to the housing market in droves – outpacing owner-occupiers – investors could face a potential slowdown in capital gains.
- Exclusive
- Industrial
Batteries to power up warehouse pipeline as big as 40 MCGs
Dexus’ program to install batteries in all its new warehouses will cut its tenants’ energy bills by almost $100,000 a year and reduce their carbon emissions.
Real estate agent doubles his money by selling own apartment for $6.5m
There’s a national shortage of suitable units for downsizers, so a man who sells them for a living has just sold his own home – at quite a profit.
BTR push in Sydney’s west gains steam despite flood risks
The NSW planning department concluded that increasing housing supply outweighed potential risks such as flooding for one BTR project.
Wealth
Why it’s worth selling your investment property before you retire
Making the most of higher superannuation caps can boost your retirement coffers just when you need it the most.
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.
Technology
Snapchat going backwards in Australia
Elon Musk’s takeover crushed Twitter, but Snap is still a fraction of the size of the dominant Meta-Google online advertising machine.
The Meta-morphosis of Mark Zuckerberg
The robotic nerd depicted in The Social Network has turned into the kinder, more accessible face of Silicon Valley. What’s going on?
Why Apple has a $US300b ‘Made in China’ problem
Apple is gradually weaning itself off China as a longstanding and mutually-beneficial relationship between the corporate giant and the country begins to fray.
Work & Careers
Pro-Palestinian protesters are peaceful here, say university bosses
A series of encampments are popping up on campuses as students take up the pro-Palestinian cause. But it’s very different from what’s happening in the US.
Steep rise in student visa rejections ‘scaring applicants away’
News of the federal government’s clampdown on student visas is spreading far and wide and the US is becoming the destination of choice.
Life & Luxury
These are the ‘best’ protein supplements of 2024 – but do they work?
They’re not just for gym junkies – emerging research suggests they may hold benefits for mid-lifers and older adults, as your requirements increase with age.
- Opinion
- Trump's America
Why Donald Trump is a style icon
With his dowdy, oversized navy suits and MAGA red caps, the former president’s personal brand is a crucial part of his accessible appeal.
Why women stop telling lies when they get older
Cosmetic surgery, diet drugs, bad parenting… Some things are better left unsaid – until it’s too late to matter any more.
‘It was sheer madness’: how Alla Wolf-Tasker created the Lake House
Forty years ago, ‘local produce amounted to someone leaving a sack of potatoes on the back porch’, says the destination restaurant’s co-founder.
- Opinion
- Digital Life
You’ll forget you’re even wearing these earbuds
The OpenFit earbuds by Shokz might not look the best, but they certainly feel the best of any earbuds we’ve ever reviewed.