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Eric Johnston is an associate editor of The Australian. He has more than 25 years experience as a finance journalist, including a former business editor of The Australian. He has been business editor of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age and financial services editor with The Australian Financial Review. His work has also appeared in The Wall Street Journal.

@ejohnno

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17-01-2025. Star Entertainment chief executive Steve McCann. McCann has been locked in talks all week with banks and government with the casino operator facing a deeply uncertain future. Picture: Max Mason-Hubers / The Australian

Pay now or pay later: Star boss calls for tax relief and time

The chief executive of the stricken casino has pressed his case for NSW and Queensland to provide some short term tax relief to help save thousands of jobs.

Eric Johnston and Glen Norris

CommentaryEconomics

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 12: President-elect Donald Trump walks onto the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with his wife Melania after being named TIMEâs âPerson of the Yearâ for the second time on December 12, 2024 in New York City. Trump followed a reception by ringing the opening bell on the trading floor. Spencer Platt/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by SPENCER PLATT / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Trump’s economic dream team will be Wall St’s X-factor

The pendulum is fast moving back in favour of business as the incoming US president fills the world’s most powerful economic roles.

Eric Johnston

CommentaryCompanies

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos 16 FEBRUARY, 2023: Photo of TelstraÃ¢â¬â¢s new CEO Vicki Brady.Picture: NCA NewsWire / Luis Ascui

Why Telstra’s boss is taking a different approach to building AI

Telstra chief Vicki Brady has more than a hundred ways which AI can be used across the telco and now she wants the technology to be fast tracked.

Eric Johnston

GamingCompanies

Generic pics of the Queen's Wharf as thousands of Queen's Wharf workers could potentially lose their jobs if The Star can't find more backing, Brisbane City - on Friday 10th January 2025 - Photo Steve Pohlner

Star investors prep for break-up as mysterious Macau man lifts stake

A mystery Macau-based businessman is continuing to lift his stake in Star Entertainment Group, increasing speculation investors are preparing for a break-up of the casino operator.

Glen Norris, Kathleen Skene and Eric Johnston

CommentaryCompanies

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos - SEPTEMBER 26, 2024: Generic photos of Star Casino Branding in its Brisbane Casino and Queens Wharf precinct.Picture: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell

Why Star’s secretive Macau backer is betting big

A secretive investor is friends with Star’s two Hong Kong-based partners, sources say, which could give gaming regulators a new headache if he keeps buying up shares.

Eric Johnston

CommentaryCompanies

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA : NewsWire Photos - DECEMBER 02 2024; People seen walking past the Myer Retail stores in Pitt street Mall in the Sydney CBD with its Christmas decorations on display with only four weeks till Christmas. Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

For Myer, Lew merger now hinges on fairness test

Myer shareholders will now be asking what they are really buying in the $800m-plus merger with Solomon Lew’s retail brands.

Eric Johnston

GamingCompanies

Star in death spiral as break-up looms over casino group

Troubled casino operator Star Entertainment will be lucky to survive until the end of February without a financial lifeline, Morningstar says. So how did it get to this?

Glen Norris and Eric Johnston

CommentaryCompanies

ROCKINGHAM, Western Australia (March 10, 2024) – U.S. Navy Sailors assigned to the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Annapolis (SSN 760) and HMAS Stirling Port Services crewmembers prepare the submarine to moor alongside Diamantina Pier at Fleet Base West in Rockingham, Western Australia, March 10, 2024. The nuclear-powered, conventionally-armed submarine is in HMAS Stirling for the second visit by a fast-attack submarine to Australia since the announcement of the AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) Optimal Pathway in March 2023. (U.S. Navy photo by Cmdr. Erik Wells)

How AUKUS is creating big waves on the ground

There are billions earmarked to be spent, and this Perth-based engineer is among those on the front lines of a defence revolution.

Eric Johnston

CommentaryCompanies

New Star Entertainment Group chief executive Steve McCann

Burning cash: Star’s future can be counted in months

New boss Steve McCann has his work cut out to come up with a deal to save the casino. But he is fast running out of options.

Eric Johnston

CommentaryMarkets

A trader works at his desk on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) during the first session of the new year on January 2, 2025, in New York City. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)

Are we there yet? Howard Marks revisits bubble.com warning

A quarter of a century after predicting the dot.com crash, influential US billionaire investor Howard Marks sees some worrying signs returning to shares.

Eric Johnston

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/eric-johnston/page/18