Commbank raises all its fixed home loan rates

Fixed home loan rates are on the move higher. All banks are looking at raising fixed rates now as sentiment shifts to higher rate expectations in 2026

'The states are spending like they are in lockdown': S&P

NSW and Queensland are singled out as at risk of a credit rating downgrade as infrastructure projects and entitlement claims mount, while tax increases become politically much harder

Breakfast briefing: Trump's Epstein-distraction projects unnerve markets

US data mixed with dodgy aspects; China trade surplus huge; Japanese machine tool orders jump; South Korean surprise; global growth stable; UST 10yr at 4.14%; gold up, silver zooms again; oil on hold; AU$1 = 66.8 USc

The 2026 outlook calls for recalibration

Mohamed El-Erian thinks that last year's economic tailwinds will give way to more challenging conditions as the AI narrative fades

How big is the iceberg?

Nolan Fahrenkopf says rogue nations are capitalising on gaps in crypto regulation to finance weapons programmes

Macbank goes even higher

With their retail funding strategy working a treat, Macquarie has just piled more rate pressure on its rivals with yet another increase for savers

Thoughts on the 2026 outlook

Unlike the sanguine outlook reviews from many others, David Skilling says 2026 will be another disruptive year of structural global economic and geopolitical change

Precious metal thunder

The World Gold Council sees the sharp rises in precious metal prices as quite divergent. Silver and platinum are responding to short supply, while gold to risk. Gold may be more resilient in the long term as politics skews the economic cycle

Despite new tariffs on beef, China is far from closing the door on trade with Australia

Less than a quarter of beef exports to China will be vulnerable to their new higher tariffs. James Laurenceson explains both exporters and Chinese importers have many ways to make this hit less onerous than it seems

Exports slip in November

While overall export levels are maintaining their high levels, exports of ores & minerals are falling, fuel exports are falling faster, and coal exports are diving. Saving the day is the rural sector - and gold

Macquarie monsters up the household deposit growth

The latest APRA data shows Macquarie winning the battle for household deposits bigly, grabbing share faster even as the overall sector growth slows

America's post-Trump China strategy

Stephen Roach thinks effective diplomacy will be impossible so long as the current US president is in office

The real existential threat facing Europe

Nouriel Roubini warns that Europe faces a future of relative economic backwardness as global competition intensifies

What if we taxed what people spend, not what they earn?

Thinking outside the box: Marcelo Santos suggests replacing the progressive income tax with a progressive consumption tax could bring a range of extra benefits, especially if multi-year averaging was adopted too

Four hidden financial habits that strengthen relationships

Lynda Moore finds a subtler side to money in relationships, the unspoken habits, the little interactions, and the ways we emotionally connect (or disconnect) around finances. If nurtured, these can strengthen your relationship and reduce money stress

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More banks move to stay in touch with Macbank

Two more banks have raised term deposit rates as they come under competitive pressure. They have starkly different approaches to the challenge