Talking Business with Leon Gettler

Higher for longer and rates might go up again: That's the message we’ve got from the Reserve Bank of Australia on interest rates.   Rating agencies have put the Victorian government on notice after it revealed state debt would climb to $188 billion in a budget that failed to cut spending   The scale of the Bonza collapse has been revealed in court with almost 60,000 customers affect...

The cheap Aussie airline Bonza, which is majority owned by Florida-based private investment firm 777 Partners, has appointed a voluntary administrator to run the discount regional airline after the company behind its aircraft provider repossessed its planes in Australia Star Entertainment chair David Foster latest to depart amid Sydney casino inquiry. Twitter Australia is expected to be wound up b...

Australia’s inflation comes in higher than expected at 3.6%. Service inflation is the main culprit holding back progress. Insurance premiums jumped by their most in 23 years, rents grew at their fastest annual pace face in 15 years, and education fees saw their largest quarterly rise in 12 years. You can forget about a rate cut this year! Australia will cut the growth outlook for most major econom...

Tesla is slashing headcount by more than 10%, or 140,000 jobs, as part of a global retrenchment extending all the way into its executive ranks as the carmaker struggles with slowing demand for electric vehicles. Outgoing Woolworths boss Brad Banducci was threatened with six months in jail for contempt of the Senate after he refused to directly answer questions about a profit metric, in a fiery Gre...

 In an important report, the IMF has found Australian households are more sensitive to changes in interest rates than virtually any other consumers globally because of the dominance of variable-rate mortgages, high levels of household debt and lax lending rules. The Albanese government will push insurers to cut costs for households that take steps to reduce their risks amid soaring double-dig...

In an extraordinary development in the Lehmann vs Ten defamation case, a former producer on Seven’s Spotlight program besmirched Bruce Lehrmann’s credibility by alleging he had received perks totalling tens of thousands of dollars including a $361 steak and reimbursement for the cost of sex workers and illicit drugs before he signed an exclusive interview deal with the network. Paula Hitchcock say...

In an extraordinary development in the Lehmann vs Ten defamation case, a former producer on Seven’s Spotlight program besmirched Bruce Lehrmann’s credibility by alleging he had received perks totalling tens of thousands of dollars including a $361 steak and reimbursement for the cost of sex workers and illicit drugs before he signed an exclusive interview deal with the network. Paula Hitchcock say...

Data from research firms show the number of people using X daily is falling, more than a year after tech billionaire Elon Musk bought the app formerly known as Twitter.  Australian unions will push for a 5% increase to the minimum wage for more than 2.9 million workers, while employers will demand a major pay slowdown to offset record increases that “overcompensated” for inflation. Jacqui Lam...

The RBA keeps rates on hold but says the board isn’t “ruling anything in or out” on interest rates. A new report forecasts housing supply to fall off a cliff over the next two years putting the Australian government further behind its ambitious housing targets. Uber will pay over $272 million to Australian taxi drivers to compensate them for lost income because it entered the Australian market. Au...

Much to the dismay of Fed Chair Powell, US CPI is HOT. Headline CPI inflation increased 3.2% Y/Y, accelerating from 3.1% in January. After this data, Fed rate futures are pricing in only 1% odds of a rate cut at the next FOMC meeting. It also dents Biden’s re-election chances. CreditorWatch has warned more businesses will go under in the coming months as cost pressures from interest rates, inflati...

China sets ambitious economic growth target of ‘around 5%’ for 2024, as leaders aim to restore confidence in faltering economy. Rocked by a series of money-laundering scandals, Australia’s casinos are looking beyond hard core gaming to a safer bet – ­tourists. Business-related personal insolvencies are on the rise, as personal guarantees catch up with directors of previously wound-up businesses.&n...

Universities could soon be facing major funding changes as the biggest review of the sector in decades calls for a radical reshaping of the tertiary education sector. The tax office is investigating a suspected $180 million tax fraud by a top formwork contractor in the construction industry that could end up as the biggest tax fraud in Australian corporate history. Australia’s big four consulting...

The banking oligopoly looks to be entrenched. It seems that the takeover of Suncorp bank by ANZ allowed by the Competition Tribunal despite ACCC objections. Competition law in Australia is a joke. Research undertaken by the OECD has concluded that those parts of the country with the highest level of migrants tend to have the highest productivity. Four Corners reveals that Coles and Woolworths have...

Sydney house prices force thousands of young families out of NSW, productivity commission says.   At least 150 Australian Tax Office officials have been implicated in the TikTok tax fraud where tens of thousands of Australians learned how to game collecting GST.   Australia is going after X. Communications minster, Rowland warns that when new laws are introduced X faces fines for 5% of a...

  Although the RBA maintained its cash rate at a 12-year high of 4.35% — as predicted by economists – its quarterly forecasts showed inflation will only hit the midpoint of its 2-3% target band in 2026. Looks like interest rate cuts could be some time away.   Utes, four-wheel drives and other light commercial vehicles could be phased or priced out of the market under Chris Bowen’s long a...

Hong Kong court orders liquidation of troubled Evergrande echoing Lehman Brothers' collapse. Banks, suppliers, and property owners  in China  take a massive hit. The real estate crisis poses a threat to its economy's recovery.   Experts say Changes to Stage 3 means the government is aligning better to tax design principles and relieves pressure on families disproportionately affecte...

What does Chemist Warehouse's Australian merger mean? The long-term cost of the federal government’s debt interest bill has blown out by $80 billion since the May budget, overtaking the NDIS. Australia’s insurance giants warn premium costs will spiral beyond the reach of more households unless homes are relocated from high-risk areas & planning laws consider natural disasters. Luxury property,...

Chalmers appoints Bank of England economist Andrew Hauser as the next deputy governor of the RBA, a rare external appointment of an expert who will help shepherd the central bank through its biggest changes in decade   Fallen war hero Ben Roberts-Smith has been dealt another huge blow, ordered to pay more costs in his failed defamation trial.     ASX-listed Seven West Media’s TV net...

Sam Altman is back at OpenAI as CEO, Greg Brockman, and the rest of the team is reinstated. Guess what? Open AI has new board members.   Fresh RBA minutes from its Melbourne Cup Day meeting revealed the central bank had left the door open for further rate hikes should inflation prove persistent.   Kelly Bayer Rosemarie has stood down as OPTUS CEO. She should get a generous payout as she...

Moody's changes the outlook of America's debt to negative, putting the US one step closer to losing its last perfect credit rating.   Fears of soaring prices and shortages as Australian Federal Police investigate a major cyber-attack against Australia's ports.   Optus, Telstra and other major telco boards required to sign off on a new or updated cyber risk management program every year o...

Europe's PMI stats signal looming recession - darkest forecast since the financial meltdown & COVID slump. Unlucky 13. We have seen the 13th increase in official interest rates by the RBA since May last year. Cash rate now at 4.35% The number of Australian companies that collapsed in October soared 43%. ASIC sues TelstraSuper for failing more than 200 times to respond to customer complain...

The World Bank is warning that even a small disruption to crude supplies due to escalating Middle Eastern conflict could remove between 500,000 and 2 million barrels a day from global markets and reach $157 a barrel. A massive trade deal between Australia and the European Union appears all but doomed after "endgame" negotiations between the two sides collapsed before they even began. Deloitte repo...

 Central banks are losing the fight against inflation. The 2 Year Treasury Bond, one of the benchmarks of whether Inflation is rising or declining, has hit a 16 year high with a Yield of 5.02%. Being rich is my superpower’ Tapes reveal cardboard mogul Anthony Pratt paying monthly retainers of $25K to Paul Keating and $8k to Tony Abbott while Prince Charles received $182,000 in 2021. Pratt als...

Australia's eSafety commission fines Elon Musk's X $610,500 for failing to meet anti-child-abuse standards.   A new cloud forms over global economy as Middle East conflict threatens recovery, warns IMF chief.   Cryptocurrency advocates are tipping the price of bitcoin to reach $US100,000 within the next five years.   By the time the Yes campaign kicked off its final, multimillion-do...

Virgin surfs post-COVID boom to first profit in 11 years.     The Israel-Hamas war sends Aussie petrol prices skyrocketing. Senate committee suggests the Albanese government denied Qatar Airways more flights into Australia to protect Qantas’ market share and keep airfares high. The big four banks slash 2000 jobs. Boral says spiking electricity prices and Australia’s patchy ener...