Wall Street appears to have given US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s $1tn toxic assets plan the thumbs-up, with the Dow surging nearly 500 points on Monday. But what do the pundits think?
Business
Eddington blasts golden handshakes. What about News Corp?
Leading Australian company director, Sir Rod Eddington, strongly criticised lofty termination payments last week. Was he so forthright in the News Corporation boardroom last month? Adam Schwab writes:
Foreign alcopops winners drink to Senator Fieding
So who is the Distilled Spirits Council that Senator Fielding and Malcolm Turnbull have gifted $290 million in alcopops tax to? Glenn Dyer invesitgates.
Beware “buying off the plan”
There are few more effective ways of generating a negative return on your investment than by buying a property “off the plan” from a developer, writes Adam Schwab.
The risky business of private equity floats
The majority of private equity floats of recent years have been disastrous for shareholders, writes Adam Schwab.
Pokies stats reveal the ‘extreme capitalism’ of Woolworths
It really is time Woolies was forced to defend its position on pokies, writes Stephen Mayne.
It’s time to redefine success
After a century of badgering from pinkos and greenies, captains of industry are grudgingly starting to accept that profits are not everything, writes Peter Vogel.
Myer shelves its dreams of world domination
Myer’s dream of a gleaming new Dubai store in the Ibn Battuta Mall has been out on laybuy, maybe shelved, writes Andrew Crook.
Jitters battle retail sales as RBA holds steady
The RBA has opted to keep rates on hold, writes Glenn Dyer.
Manufacturing slumps, but that’s just the good news
Manufacturing is contracting in Australia, just as it is in the US, Japan, Europe and all other major economies, writes Glenn Dyer.
Record 52 companies join the $100m loss club
The 2008 interim profit season officially finished at close of business on Friday but quite a few late-comers are still dribbling out losses, writes Stephen Mayne.
Fairfax Financial eyeing off Canwest
Was last week’s abortive $90 million fund raising by the Ten Network an attempt to bolster its struggling Canadian parent, asks Glenn Dyer?
Could we get forty losses exceeding $100m declared for the month?
Our list of every Australian public company that has ever announced a net loss of more than $100 million shows that we had a record 29 entries in 2007-08, writes Stephern Mayne.
Mirvac: land is for hocking, not housing
Mirvac yesterday admitted what many affordability watchers know: the housing market is manipulated to suit shareholders over householders, writes Karl Fitzgerald.
Are margin calls the new black?
If an executive is subject to a ‘margin call’ from their lender, could the sale of shares trigger insider trading provisions, asks Adam Schwab?
Japan? No. Try Russia, and the sick men of Eastern Europe
Every economy in the East is tanking: with Russia and the Ukraine probably the most damaged, writes Glenn Dyer.
Troubled Ten will look for a capital injection
The Ten Network has become the second major Australian media group to blink and approach the market for much needed new capital, writes Glenn Dyer.
Why the Chinalco deal is a disaster for Rio
The Chinalco deal appears to be a disaster for Rio Tinto shareholders and a boon for China, writes Adam Schwab.
Babcock knocking on heaven’s door
Babcock and Brown — once a strapping, cocksure investment bank — has been reduced to a withered wreck, writes Adam Schwab.
News Corp raises cash as more jobs go
Rupert Murdoch’s New Corporation is continuing its cost-cutting ways, writes Glenn Dyer.
US car sales on highway to hell
The US car industry is in deeper dispair at the start of 2009 than it was at the end of 2008, writes Glenn Dyer.
Bad times roll at the New York Times
It’s always a give away when a media company starts restricting the flow of information on its own financial wellbeing, writes Glenn Dyer.
Boral: why we shouldn’t be surprised
Long-term Boral shareholders would have greeted yesterday’s profit downgrade announcement with a weary shrug, writes Adam Schwab.
Boral earnings crumble, Westfield wobbles
The still-falling US new home market and the slump in the value of the Australian dollar has hit building product maker Boral hard, writes Glenn Dyer.
Rudd tackles executive remuneration: does nothing
Fear not executives, your multi-million dollar short-term bonuses are far safer than your investors’ capital, writes Adam Schwab.
