Commbank defends its household deposit base with a higher term deposit offer

Under pressure from Macquarie, there is a serious reordering of household deposit loyalty underway. Commbank has found a way to avoid the worst of it, and has upped other key rate to prevent leakage

Breakfast briefing: US belt-tightening takes hold, jitters haunt financial markets

American mess takes dangerous turns; Taiwanese inflation low; three central banks hold; Aussie exports jump; shipping freight rates rise; UST 10yr at 4.08%; gold holds and oil down; AU$1 = 64.7 USc

What is the gold price telling us?

Jim O'Neill consider both the bullish and bearish case for the yellow metal and markets carry it to record highs

Is Bessent right about the Fed?

Willem Buiter consider the US central Bank's failings in light of recent criticism from the US secretary of the Treasury

RBA holds again, even as inflation worries mount

RBA holds again but starts to worry about inflation pressure they can no longer ignore. They are hoping those pressure are transitory

Shifting around to maintain competitiveness

Two challenger banks tweak variable rates to keep them competitive and meaningfully lower than the big four pillar banks

Review: the Apple Watch Ultra 3 smartwatch

The biggest and baddest Apple watch, the Ultra 3, is the company's best smartwatch

What AI means for growth and jobs

Philippe Aghion and colleagues see great potential for AI to boost productivity without harming employment

Below the surface of China’s slowing retail growth

Mark Tanner says Chinese consumers are saving more of their paychecks, bruised by their losses in residential property. Conspicuous consumption is lower but there are still many bright spots, especially related to 'experiences'

China needs a consumption target

Stephen Roach thinks the next Chinese five-year plan should set a goal of raising household spending to 50% of GDP by 2035

Inflation turns higher, and that will worry the RBA

September inflation rose far more than expected, largely driven by electricity prices. Some of this is a one-off effect, but the trimmed mean suggests underlying pressures are building anyway

Tariffs, fiscal concerns … and gold to the rescue

A gold analyst says a portfolio that includes gold adds resiliency, and the diversification benefits remain as relevant as ever amid raging political & economic crosscurrents

Review: ‘Enshittification’ by Cory Doctorow

With 'Enshittification', Cory Doctorow explains why things really are getting worse and what could be done about it

Savers faced with rate drops

Three banks, including ANZ, have been quietly trimming some savings and term deposit rates. But one pushed through an increase

Agents of secular stagnation

History suggests that waves of technological innovation take time to show up in productivity, with users not producers reaping the spoils. Productivity pessimism in Australia should not last forever, says Westpac's Luci Ellis

How do banks assess you for a home loan? And how do you work out what you can afford?

An RMIT expert runs through the process of getting a home loan. Ama Samarasinghe says the key to staying stress-free is to budget for reality, not hope

Can you save by converting to a fixed rate home loan?

We look at the rationale for converting your variable rate mortgage to a fixed rate. There are good savings if you do that now, even if the RBA makes another rate cut before the end of 2025