Business News

The Preventative Departmental Expenditure Limit will be money ringfenced in the budget for preventive policies John Healey’s debut budget was far from a blockbuster, but it may come to be remembered for the birth of a plucky new character in the tax and spend universe – little PDEL. It may not have the charm of Disney’s Wall-E, but PDEL (pronounced P-Del), Preventative Departmental Expenditure Limit, to give it its full name, marks a welcome, and potentially very consequential, addition. Continu

There are plenty of reasons why Australians feel ‘mad as hell’ at the moment. These three economic policies could restore faith in politics and bring some relief Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast In the 1976 movie Network, news anchor Howard Beale tells TV viewers to stick their heads out their windows and yell: “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this any more!” It’s a sentiment that resonates today in Australia and across the world. In October, consumer sen

We are so locked into believing the market must not be questioned that we just assume everything is happening as it should Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast It is always quite striking just how greatly the overseers of the economy defend the status quo in order to ensure company profits keep rising. Right now, Australians are suffering from a cost-of-living crisis. Continue reading...

With Western Sydney international airport due to start commercial flights, the title of Australia’s leading secondary airport is up for grabs Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast This weekend, the first commercial flight will take off from Sydney’s much-anticipated new airport. Passengers will depart from Western Sydney international airport’s architecturally lauded terminals amid much fanfare on Sunday. It is not the first secondary airport to open in an Australian capita

The rise of cashless prompt screens is compelling customers to tip to avoid awkwardness rather than reward service. But who actually pockets the gratuity? Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email In an increasingly cashless society, wherever you spend money, there is often a prompt to spend more. Pubs, cafes, beauty salons, farmers’ markets, rideshares, food delivery services and even online shopping – the option to tip can present itself wherever you tap your card. Until recently, tipping “w

The IMF is not a body that needs to worry about elections or the political cost of interest rates or inflation Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast The IMF on Tuesday released its latest World Economic Outlook, suggesting “Resilience Under Strain, Urgent Choices”. But the choices are ones a government wishing to win an election would likely ignore. The IMF, as a rule, always sees a need to cut spending and lower taxes. Given its history of lending money to countries in sev

The industrial tribunal is where the human experience of fatigue and the mythologies of outdated management cultures are brought into sharper view A decision last week about work-from-home accommodations carries implications far beyond the modern workplace and into the realm of a refreshingly material understanding of existential limitation. It was only in July that Australia’s Fair Work Commission rejected the request from a full-time council employee, Steven Polak, to reduce his days in the of

Datacentre company’s sensational entry to the ASX did not go as planned – but investors may have sidestepped a disaster Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast On Monday, it was going to be one of Australia’s biggest ever stock market listings, promising investors a stake in an AI-enhanced future of liquid-cooled datacentres packed with Nvidia microchips. By Friday, Firmus Technologies had sensationally withdrawn its ASX listing plans after the promised demand for its much-hy

Housing construction is at its strongest level since 2016, but it’s AI that is sucking up resources for builders The latest series of data on housing and building activity has been released, showing residential building is growing strongly but also that the datacentre boom is massive and ongoing. As political parties look to keep housing on the agenda, the massive resources devoted to building datacentres is going to hit anyone wishing to increase housing supply. Continue reading...