Tesla is slashing headcount by more than 10%, or 140,000 jobs, as part of a global retrenchment extending all the way into its executive ranks as the carmaker struggles with slowing demand for electric vehicles. Outgoing Woolworths boss Brad Banducci was threatened with six months in jail for contempt of the Senate after he refused to directly answer questions about a profit metric, in a fiery Greens-led Senate hearing that went off the rails on Tuesday. Greens are accused of grandstanding instead of focusing on cost of living. Leading defamation lawyers and academics say Bruce Lehrmann’s sp ..read more

 In an important report, the IMF has found Australian households are more sensitive to changes in interest rates than virtually any other consumers globally because of the dominance of variable-rate mortgages, high levels of household debt and lax lending rules. The Albanese government will push insurers to cut costs for households that take steps to reduce their risks amid soaring double-digit premium growth that is expected to continue in 2024. Craig Emerson's interim report into the behaviour of big supermarkets recommends massive fines for those who abuse their buying power to unfai ..read more

In an extraordinary development in the Lehmann vs Ten defamation case, a former producer on Seven’s Spotlight program besmirched Bruce Lehrmann’s credibility by alleging he had received perks totalling tens of thousands of dollars including a $361 steak and reimbursement for the cost of sex workers and illicit drugs before he signed an exclusive interview deal with the network. Paula Hitchcock says she regularly attended the billionaire Pratt family’s weekly Shabbat at the invitation of her biological ­father, Richard Pratt, and his wife Jeanne. The Australian economy is in the middle of a ..read more

In an extraordinary development in the Lehmann vs Ten defamation case, a former producer on Seven’s Spotlight program besmirched Bruce Lehrmann’s credibility by alleging he had received perks totalling tens of thousands of dollars including a $361 steak and reimbursement for the cost of sex workers and illicit drugs before he signed an exclusive interview deal with the network. Paula Hitchcock says she regularly attended the billionaire Pratt family’s weekly Shabbat at the invitation of her biological ­father, Richard Pratt, and his wife Jeanne. The Australian economy is in the middle of a ..read more

Data from research firms show the number of people using X daily is falling, more than a year after tech billionaire Elon Musk bought the app formerly known as Twitter.  Australian unions will push for a 5% increase to the minimum wage for more than 2.9 million workers, while employers will demand a major pay slowdown to offset record increases that “overcompensated” for inflation. Jacqui Lambie will demand the Liberals agree to boost transparency in Tasmania’s political system, and rethink plans for a $715 million AFL stadium in Hobart, in exchange for a deal to return Premier Jeremy R ..read more

The RBA keeps rates on hold but says the board isn’t “ruling anything in or out” on interest rates. A new report forecasts housing supply to fall off a cliff over the next two years putting the Australian government further behind its ambitious housing targets. Uber will pay over $272 million to Australian taxi drivers to compensate them for lost income because it entered the Australian market. Australia’s second biggest telco, Optus, could be partially offloaded to the Canadian private equity titan in a blockbuster deal valuing the company at $16bn. It will be the biggest foreign investor ..read more

Much to the dismay of Fed Chair Powell, US CPI is HOT. Headline CPI inflation increased 3.2% Y/Y, accelerating from 3.1% in January. After this data, Fed rate futures are pricing in only 1% odds of a rate cut at the next FOMC meeting. It also dents Biden’s re-election chances. CreditorWatch has warned more businesses will go under in the coming months as cost pressures from interest rates, inflation, wages and labour shortages bite deeper with payment defaults hitting a record high in February. Billionaires such as Clive Palmer and Mike Cannon-Brookes will have their influence on politics dr ..read more

China sets ambitious economic growth target of ‘around 5%’ for 2024, as leaders aim to restore confidence in faltering economy. Rocked by a series of money-laundering scandals, Australia’s casinos are looking beyond hard core gaming to a safer bet – ­tourists. Business-related personal insolvencies are on the rise, as personal guarantees catch up with directors of previously wound-up businesses.  Australia’s cost-of-living crisis appears to be easing on several fronts but one key household expense continues to climb sharply and painfully: insurance.   The possibility of an ACCC i ..read more

Universities could soon be facing major funding changes as the biggest review of the sector in decades calls for a radical reshaping of the tertiary education sector. The tax office is investigating a suspected $180 million tax fraud by a top formwork contractor in the construction industry that could end up as the biggest tax fraud in Australian corporate history. Australia’s big four consulting firms have seen the value of contracts awarded by the Commonwealth nearly halve in value following the federal government’s cold war against the sector after the PwC tax scandal. French building gi ..read more

The banking oligopoly looks to be entrenched. It seems that the takeover of Suncorp bank by ANZ allowed by the Competition Tribunal despite ACCC objections. Competition law in Australia is a joke. Research undertaken by the OECD has concluded that those parts of the country with the highest level of migrants tend to have the highest productivity. Four Corners reveals that Coles and Woolworths have been profiting from higher prices at the check-out, despite repeated assurances from the supermarket giants that they’re doing everything in their power to keep grocery bills down. Star Entertainm ..read more