Talking Business with Leon Gettler

Hurricanes in the US have cost lives, wreaked enormous damage and left enormous financial costs. As we witness extreme weather events escalating worldwide, the connection to climate change is undeniable. Prime Minister Albanese just bought a $4.3M ocean front home, when most people can't afford their rent or mortgage. For a supposed man of the people, he seems to be completely out of touch ANU ask...

ASIC data shows company insolvencies have hit record highs. Half of Australians expect cost-of-living pressures to deteriorate over the coming two years New research shows grocery costs are the biggest pain point for Aussie consumers despite the recent pullback in official inflation figures. ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott doesn’t expect to remain in the top job to see through a multi-year integration...

Qatar Airlines gets around Qantas protectionism by buying a 25% stake in Virgin. Murdoch's REA walks away from Rightmove deal after making four bad offers. Rank-and-file Labor members urging the Albanese government to curtail negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions.   An average of 4.02 million national viewers watched Brisbane’s 60-point thrashing of Sydney in the 2024 AFL Grand F...

Unlike other central banks, the Reserve Bank of Australia keeps its rates on hold waiting for inflation to come down. Australia’s annual inflation rate in August falls to lowest since 2021 at 2.7%   Australia’s Misery index is at its highest level since the global financial crisis and higher than during the COVID-19 era. The Albanese government surprises some by seeking advice on scaling back...

We need a Labor Party in which the big issues are confronted,” former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty said, describing the Albanese government as instead being “mired in mediocrity”. Commonwealth Bank of Australia is exploring the possibility of replacing thousands of local call centre staff with a ChatGPT-style platform in an expanded use of artificial intelligence for customers. About two thirds of Au...

    . The Murdoch’s control over their media empire is about to be scrutinized in court. It’s also now the target of the activist investor Starboard. The legal battle between Murdoch’s kids over Murdoch’s plan to change the structure of his family trust to give all voting power to his oldest son, Lachlan. New data shows almost all of Australia’s major airports including Sydney...

The Murdoch’s control over their media empire is about to be scrutinized in court. It’s also now the target of the activist investor Starboard. The legal battle between Murdoch’s kids over Murdoch’s plan to change the structure of his family trust to give all voting power to his oldest son, Lachlan. New data shows almost all of Australia’s major airports including Sydney and Brisbane are vulnerabl...

Australian GDP per capita has declined for a record 6th consecutive quarter. Australian health Department officials concede that private hospitals are uninvestable and more will close. Rupert Murdoch-owned firm REA Group weighs up bid for UK-based Rightmove.   Blackstone to acquire Australian data centre business AirTrunk. The world’s largest private equity group is betting on growth of artif...

Australia’s latest monthly CPI indicator came in lower at 3.5% in the 12 months to July. But energy subsidies are weighing on the index. As many as 1.6 million Australian households are now facing home insurance affordability stress The Australian government is set to take a tougher approach to airlines and airports over flight delays under changes outlined in the aviation white paper. Jim Chalmer...

Plummeting iron ore prices could cost the federal government $3 billion in revenue, which is likely to push Australia’s budget further into deficit this financial year.   Federal police have been called in to investigate whether Regional Express’s former chairman amid increasingly bitter recriminations over the airline’s collapse late last month. New legislation to completely defang the CFMEU...

Bruce Daisley says Elon Musk should be arrested if it's proven that his actions incited recent riots in the UK. Daisley is a former senior executive at Twitter. Amid growing political tensions over cost-of-living pressures, RBA deputy governor Andrew Hauser slams those who claim to be sure of the way forward as “false prophets” Australian technology companies say job graduate readiness is at its l...

On Monday, the global stock markets were crashing (until they weren’t).  Market volatility is now the new trend, reminiscent of 1987 crash and the 2000 tech wreck.   Elon Musk sues Unilever and Mars for conspiring to boycott X and deprive it of revenue. When it gets to trial, he can explain to the judge why he told advertisers to “go f… the selves.” RBA rules out interest rate cuts for t...

Kamala Harris is raising money in record breaking amounts. HUGE relief to the RBA Board. Australia’s Q2 headline CPI inflation in line with market expectations. The big surprise was trimmed mean inflation. It undershot expectations to come in at 3.9%, down from 4% in March. Rex officially goes into administration, regional routes still running. Australia’s top companies face lower profits this ear...

What does the market anticipate in a potential Kamala Harris presidency? Reserve Bank of Australia governor Michele Bullock  has warned that rapidly rising building costs are keeping inflation in Australia higher than overseas Calling CrowdStrike!! What’s the plan on reimbursing everyone for the lost revenue?? This outage cost the global economy billions of dollars so far. Oxford Economics wa...

The markets are waking up to the prospect of Trump winning the election following the assassination attempt. That means tax cuts, tariffs and de-regulation. There is also heightened political risk which may add to volatility. A group of ultra wealthy people are donating millions to a super PAC backing Donald Trump for President. Elon Musk is leading the charge with $US45 million per month to get T...

Euro recovers as left-wing coalition leads in French legislative election, financial concerns loom. Australia has some of the worst real wage growth of the OECD’s 38 member nations, lagging behind the United Kingdom, United States and Canada, exposing the federal government’s struggle to deliver on its election commitment to get real wages moving as inflation remains high. AUSTRAC Chief Executive...

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are among those taking a fresh look at how a Donald Trump victory in November could play out in the bond market, urging clients to position for inflation & higher long-term bond yields. Bank for International Settlements warns central banks to avoid cutting interest rates too soon owing to the risk of a fresh flare-up in inflation.  &nb...

 Australia’s monthly inflation rate increased to its highest level in 2024 in the latest indication that the Reserve Bank won’t be cutting interest rates soon and might yet hike again. Woolworths and Coles face billion-dollar fines under stronger grocery code The Liberals are furious with Matt Kean after he rejected their claims for Nuclear Power. He is head of a new peak climate group. New r...

"Yes, Everyone Really Is Sick a Lot More Often After Covid" It's not your imagination: Around the world, people really are getting sick more often than before the pandemic. The Reserve Bank of Australia keeps interest rates at 4.35% with potential hikes if inflation persists amid economic uncertainty, slow growth and federal and state government budget spending stoking inflation. The Alb...

"Yes, Everyone Really Is Sick a Lot More Often After Covid" It's not your imagination: Around the world, people really are getting sick more often than before the pandemic. The Reserve Bank of Australia keeps interest rates at 4.35% with potential hikes if inflation persists amid economic uncertainty, slow growth and federal and state government budget spending stoking inflation. The Alb...

Peter Costello resigns. He is succeeded by Catherine West, a former Murdoch executive with Sky in the UK. The Chemist Warehouse-Sigma merger will give the company nearly half the market. Bain bids $1.83 billion for Bapcor amid market challenges. Bonza’s administrators sacks all staff as prospects for a sale dry up. Lion, one of the largest drinks groups in the world, intends shutting a craft brewe...

Rupert Murdoch locks in his fifth marriage (and his molecular biologist wife her third marriage). Just the odds! Australia’s GDP growth for the March quarter was an anaemic 0.1%  So annual growth has slipped to 1.1%. Australia remains in a per capita recession as we have been since late 202 Yoga instructors, martial artists and dog handlers have beaten some construction trades to a spot on th...

Inflation has risen for a second month to 3.6% in the year to April, confounding expectations that consumer price growth would restart its downward trend: Lend Lease exits overseas markets, waving the white flag and finally agreeing with what investors have told it for years: it’s just too hard. Research has found that migrants in Australia are driving Ubers and not working in skilled jobs. Austra...

RBA minutes confirm a tightening bias, but it's reluctant to hike. This, as consumer sentiment remains deeply pessimistic with just over half expecting rate rises to resume over the next 12 months. Macquarie Group economists estimate there is a 50% chance of recession this year, as the “trap” of high migration unwinds and high interest rates leave the private sector in “stagnation”. A setback for...

Chalrmer’s election budget promises inflation will give voters a Christmas by returning to the RBA’s 2-3% target by the end of the year. The question is whether the RBA agrees. Small business is likely to be underwhelmed by the Budget which only announced investment initiatives for select industries only. A big victory for Elon Musk. An Australian federal court judge has shut down the Australian e...