Business

Australian states have racked up hundreds of billions of dollars in debt while maintaining their COVID-level spending habits - sparking fears of a fiscal crisis.

Department store giant Myer will temporarily close Sass & Bide stores as it works on a major overhaul of the high-profile womenswear label, set to relaunch in the coming months.

Half of business executives and other leaders expect turbulent times over the next two years, and only one per cent said they expect calm. The resulting is the world ‘sitting on a precipice’.

THE ECONOMIST: But can the public stomach higher inflation?

Arch-rivals BHP and Rio Tinto are looking at mining hundreds of millions of tonnes of WA iron ore together, in what could mark the beginning of a cartel to curb China’s shakedown.

Mortgage holders will be holding their breath in 2026 as the big banks signal higher costs for homeowners and investors.

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The depiction of the United States as a place where economic hardship is deep and widespread has been a go-to of official Chinese messaging for years. But one aspect is new.

A little over four years after Mark Zuckerberg changed Facebook’s name to Meta, reflecting his view the future of work, play and socializing was going virtual, the company is making a major course correction. 

The $1-a-share unfranked payout aims to underline the steelmaker can do better for shareholders than a rejected $13 billion offer by the Stokes family’s SGH and US group Steel Dynamics.

THE ECONOMIST: The real power to discipline the AI chatbot lies outside governments

Global central bank chiefs, including Australia's Michele Bullock, have issued a rare joint statement, backing US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

More men are now adding cosmetics to their routines, industry experts say. The men’s makeup market is now one of the most lucrative growth opportunities left in beauty.

Jerome Powell has the backing of fellow central bankers from Australia to Europe after the Trump administration threatened him with criminal charges.

The defence stock has been on a tear the past week, fuelled by US President Donald Trump’s abduction of the Venezuelan president and the threat of another US intervention in Iran.

Consumers have started the new year in a gloomy mood amid mounting concerns about job insecurity and whether the Reserve Bank will lift interest rates in the coming months.