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The AFR View

Yesterday

James Packer has cashed in his chips  at Crown.

James Packer has a point about government’s gambling hypocrisy

Crooks have benefited by being able to wash their ill-gotten gains in thousands of less-scrutinised venues compared with the bright lights of high-profile casinos.

This Month

 Some of the largest funds involved in the IFM had committed to divest or otherwise wind down their direct exposure to Russian companies and products in response to its illegal invasion of Ukraine.

Big super’s ESG failure on Russian oil

Members that have opted for so-called “ethical” funds would be right to switch to other providers and expect regulators to ramp up their scrutiny.

Yet nearly 100 days on from the three-day event the Albanese government’s second-term agenda to boost productivity, growth, and living standards remains disappointingly threadbare.

Two warnings for Labor to restore productivity summit momentum

The frequency of alarm bells being sounded should alert Labor to the critical need to make a fair dinkum productivity agenda its priority in the new year.

Yet the short-lived market rally turned into a sell-off amid justified investor jitters about the bubbly ‘circularity’ of the AI boom.

Expect AI unknowns to continue the market’s wild ride

When so much money is chasing so much unproven value, investors will need to strap in and be prepared for what is likely to bring further turbulence in 2026.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has rejected calls to restore tougher budget spending rules to tackle debt.

The IMF is flashing red lights on Australia’s spending spree

The longer Canberra and the states remain in fiscal paralysis, the narrower the nation’s options will be to chart a path to higher growth and living standards.

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 Or will its junior partner tail wag the dog again and once again chose picking a fight over the environment over securing a sensible outcome?

Libs mustn’t let Nats wag the dog on environment again

Ideally, the Coalition should seek to play a constructive role in negotiating sensible and balanced environmental laws with the government.

Westpac CEO Anthony Miller.

Politics aside, economics of big banks are under pressure

Branch closures should be a commercial decision based on changing customer demand and competitive pressures, not the wishes of the banks’ political masters.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s failure to halt the relentless flow of illegal boats crossing the English Channel has contributed to his crumbling popularity, while simultaneously fuelling the rise of Nigel Farage’s right-wing populist Reform UK.

Australia’s immigration debate is not immune to populism

The key to a successful immigration program is broad-based community support that prevents the issue from becoming a political lightning rod.

The sustained internal karping about Ley’s leadership - at the heart of the campaign waged by conservatives to convince the party room to ditch net zero -  has contributed to Ley’s dire personal ratings.

Anti-net zero not helping the Libs hold the base

Reviving the carbon wars is a strategy that will have to do more heavy lifting than the Bulgarian Olympic team, the latest Accent/Redbridge poll suggests.

The Liberal Party’s identity crisis (the so-called party of rational economics and market-based solutions) is now catapulting further towards the fringes of the political right.

Liberals abandon net zero while Labor struggles to deliver it

The Coalition’s decision to ditch the target is largely symbolic and carries no real weight when it comes to Australia’s climate trajectory.

Andrew Liveris at the AFR Infrastructure Summit,

Infrastructure challenge mirrors Australia’s economic weaknesses

The persistent challenge will be to secure and grow the pool of private dollars to fund the next generation of infrastructure.

The “Magnificent 7” companies are investing unprecedented sums to win the global race to develop generative AI hardware and software.

Will AI exposure grow our super nest eggs in the long term?

The best way for super funds to navigate the uncertainty and potential volatility is to be transparent about the risks to our super savings.

The inflation spike and uptick in joblessness circle back to the fundamental supply-side problem at the heart of Australia’s economic malaise over the past decade: low productivity growth.

Economy’s flashing lights should drive Labor’s second-term agenda

Governments of both persuasions have dragged their feet on the measures needed to efficiently expand the economy, grow real wages and boost living standards.

The 1975 dismissal. Whitlam and the palace. By David Rowe

Australia’s entitlement culture downstream of the Dismissal

We would be better off if Labor sought to emulate the Hawke-Keating economic model rather than the Whitlam government’s irresponsible spending.

Graham Richardson at ALP Conference held in the Sydney Town Hall in 1994.

Richo’s gospel was every man for himself

Graham Richardson embodied everything most normal people detest about politics. His legacy is one of self-enrichment, self-aggrandisement and self-indulgence.

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The political volatility that has unsettled confidence in America over the past decade will continue.

No place for complacency about populism in Australia

Delivering the return to prosperity that most voters want would be the best way for either major party to secure a broad-based constituency and keep populism at bay.

The success of the tech “broligarchs” of Silicon Valley in ingratiating themselves with Donald Trump in his second term to secure their business interests underscores how entrenched their influence has become. I

Is Labor’s big tech crackdown now a backdown?

Making big tech companies pay for news stories posted on social media is a bit like bringing a knife to a gun fight as the AI revolution gathers speed.

Left to right: Former Optus chairman Paul O’Sullivan, chairman John Arthur, CEO Stephen Rue and chief financial officer Michael Venter were grilled by senators on Monday.

Clickbait Optus inquiry won’t keep Triple Zero online

It is reasonable to question whether Stephen Rue is the right man to fix the mess he inherited. But there is a right way for politicians to approach that.

RBA governor Michele Bullock
now faces her biggest stress test as governor. Her much-touted “narrow path” to a soft landing has veered off course.

RBA in firing line as inflation miss blows out target

Managing dashed hopes of rate relief, preserving jobs and containing price pressures is now the uncomfortable task for both Labor and the RBA.

BYD electric vehicles parked in a storage yard in Kilsyth in Melbourne’s east.

Close BYD carbon credit loophole for EVs uptake sake

Clever companies exploit the seams of new regulations. The onus is on governments to remedy attempts to subvert the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard scheme.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/the-afr-view