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Nine of the 11 sectors finished higher on Trump’s talk of peace. Photo: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

MARKET WRAPPremiumTrump’s backdown sparks huge ASX rally

Australia’s sharemarket has surged nearly two per cent amid Donald Trump’s latest announcement - marking its best week since early April.

Cameron Micallef

Westpac chief economist and former Reserve Bank assistant governor Luci Ellis.

RBACommentsPremiumBig four bank warns of two more rate hikes this year

Westpac’s view about the Reserve Bank’s future rate trajectory is the opposite of economists at HSBC and ANZ, who on Friday tipped the institution’s next move to be cuts.

Cheyanne Enciso

Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank.

CNBC newsCommentsPremiumECB hikes interest rates for first time since 2023

The European Central Bank announced a quarter-point rate hike on Thursday, bringing its key interest rate to 2.25 per cent as the Iran war continues to blow inflation off target.

Chloe Taylor

Labour productivity growth is going "from bad to worse", with data showing another quarterly fall. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)

EconomyPremium'Bad to worse': productivity sinks to post-pandemic low

Poor productivity is bedevilling the Australian economy, with levels heading in the wrong direction for Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

Callum Godde

Dario Amodei, co-founder and chief executive officer of Anthropic.

EconomyPremiumAI giant’s boss insists he’s not a prophet of doom on jobs

Anthropic CEO says governments should promise economic support for those financially impacted by AI — and that AI should be subject to rigorous regulation

Kaitlyn Huamani

Profit forecasts for the big four banks have been cut, a move tied to slowing home loan growth.

BusinessVideoCommentsPremiumBank profits to take big hit as house prices tipped to fall

Citi’s research team has cut its profit forecasts for all four major banks as it said proposed tax changes to housing will slow demand for loans.

Tom Richardson

The Consumer Price Index in the United States increased 4.2 per cent in the 12 months through May. (AP PHOTO)

BusinessPremiumUS consumer inflation breaks above four per cent

Inflation has eroded wages in the United States for a second consecutive month, according to government statistics.

Staff Writers

Kmart is continuing with a program to return store checkouts to exits to improve space allocation. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)

EconomyCommentsPremiumKmart finally getting rid of this major customer bugbear

Kmart Group is refurbishing two dozen more stores to a new format, and opening a new concept store for home goods near an Australian capital city.

Derek Rose

The NSW Government is taking action as hundreds of patients lay in hospital beds waiting on Commonwealth aged care or NDIS placements before they can leave. Image: NewsWire

HEALTHLifeline thrown to stranded hospital patients

Hundreds of patients left waiting in hospital beds for federal government support have been thrown a lifeline by one state government.

Emma Kirk

Australians are facing some of the bleakest consumer sentiment in decades, leaving households increasingly pessimistic about what comes next.

opinion
opinion
EditorialCommentsPremium
opinion
Ailing economy gives Aussies little to smile about

Australians are facing some of the bleakest consumer sentiment in decades, leaving households increasingly pessimistic about what comes next.

Editorial

The median house price in Perth is now over $1 million, the third highest behind Sydney and Brisbane. 

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EconomyCommentsPremium
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‘No longer affordable’: WA downbeat about buying a house

West Australians feel the worst about buying a house than the rest of the country, a new survey has revealed, as the State’s property prices continue their stubborn climb.

Cheyanne Enciso and Katina Curtis

Commonwealth Bank and NAB predict interest rates will fall in 2027. Newswire

FINANCEPremium‘Likely down’: Major banks’ huge rate call

Two of Australia’s major banks have announced new rates forecasts, as slowing GDP growth and cooling economic momentum shift the outlook.

Cameron Micallef

Australia’s consumer confidence has fallen. NewsWire Nicholas Eagar

NEWSPremium‘Deeply pessimistic’: Grim sign for Aussies

Australians are more miserable now than they were during the Covid pandemic, as their budgets stretch further than ever.

Cameron Micallef

Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock has announced three interest rate hikes in 2026. NewsWire / Christian Gilles

Your MoneyCommentsPremium‘Gut punch’: Warning over new interest rate reality

Australian mortgage-holders are being warned the era of cheap credit is gone for good - with interest rates set to remain permanently higher in a post-Covid world.

Cameron Micallef

A business sentiment survey will indicate how much cost pressures are being passed on to consumers. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)

EconomyCommentsPremiumConfidence readings punctuate lull in economic calendar

Consumer and business sentiment surveys are the highlight of an otherwise quiet week on the economic front in Australia, as global turmoil casts a shadow.

Jacob Shteyman

The International Air Transport Association forecasts airline profit per passenger in the Asia-Pacific region will fall 35 per cent this year. NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

TRAVELHammer blow for Australian airlines

Airlines trying to juggle huge fuel bills have been warned their per-passenger profits could fall by as much as 35 per cent this year.

Blair Jackson

Not Supplied

FINANCEPremiumTrio of shocks batter Australian economy

Australia’s recession risk is rising as the national economy is hit with three economic shocks, and the worst may still be ahead.

Cameron Micallef

Not Supplied

NewsCommentsPremiumLabor responds to NZ Prime Minister’s CGT swipe

A leading Labor minister has responded after New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon claimed the CGT was a ‘wrecking ball tax’.

Nathan Schmidt

CCIWA chief executive Will Golsby says the fuel excise cut should be extended.

wa newsCommentsPremiumWA lobby group CCIWA calls for fuel discount to continue

WA’s chief business lobby group is calling on the Albanese Government to keep its fuel excise discount going beyond June 30, as cost of living pressures continue to hurt family budgets. 

Joe Spagnolo

Anthony Albanese has laughed off suggestions of hostilities between Australia and New Zealand as the two countries sign a new trade agreement. Dan Peled / NewsWire

POLITICSPremium‘Wrecking ball’: Albo laughs off CGT gibe

Anthony Albanese and his NZ counterpart have signed a new agreement, dismissing suggestions of hostility after a “cheeky” budget rivalry.

Ike Morris and Cameron Micallef

Anthony Albanese has laughed off suggestions of hostilities between Australia and New Zealand as the two countries sign a new trade agreement. Dan Peled / NewsWire

TRADE‘Cheeky’: Albo laughs off NZ tax jab

Anthony Albanese and his NZ counterpart have signed a new agreement, dismissing suggestions of hostility after a “cheeky” budget rivalry.

Ike Morris and Cameron Micallef

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POLITICSPremiumAlbo admits One Nation behind huge backflip

Anthony Albanese has admitted One Nation’s rise was a factor behind his government’s controversial backflip on key taxes in May’s budget.

Nathan Schmidt and Tia Clarkson-Pascoe

Electricity prices across Queensland are about to drop giving households and small businesses some cost of living relief. NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

MONEYPremiumEnergy prices to drop by $151 in one state

Energy prices for regional households in one Aussie state are about to drop by about $151, following a major price ruling from the regulator.

Emma Kirk

Eight of the 11 sectors rose despite Friday’s overall market fall. Photo: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

MARKET WRAPPremiumAussie sharemarket slumps on banks, miners

The ASX 200 has dropped 61 points as slumping iron ore prices and a plunge in Asian tech stocks hammered miners and banks, despite most sectors finishing higher.

Cameron Micallef