Business, Economics and Finance

The Australian share market had a solid finish to the week as bets on a rate cut next Tuesday remained strong. See how the day unfolded on our business blog.

Hotter than expected jobs figures just released are complicating Australia's economic picture as Daniel Ziffer explains.

Xero chief executive Sukhinder Singh Cassidy joins The Business following Xero's full-year financial results. She says Silicon Valley is more obsessed with AI, rather than uncertainty caused by the Trump administration.
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89,000 people found jobs in April, with the majority of new roles being full-time positions, mainly filled by women.

Borrowers are going to be fixated on the Reserve's rate decision on May 20, with Australian households among the most indebted in the world. Veteran bank analyst Brian Johnson at MST marquee says the more rates are cut, the more people can borrow, the higher house prices will go.

US Treasury bond yields are surging again because investors are selling bonds and using the cash to buy stocks, with a renewed sense of optimism about the future.

Unemployment rate holds steady in April at 4.1 per cent, keeping expectations high the RBA will cut interest rates at its next meeting.

Australia's unemployment rate held steady in April as 89,000 people found employment — much stronger jobs growth than had been forecast. 

Business in 90 Seconds

Business in 90 Seconds

A family-run Tasmanian hazelnut farm that was reluctantly put up for sale last year has not only survived but thrived thanks to finding a market online.

Wages rose a bit more than expected in the latest quarter but that should not stop the Reserve Bank from cutting interest rates next week.

Former Productivity Commission chair, Michael Brennan says the architecture is in place for the Albanese government to see productivity gains in its second term, including in priority areas such as construction.

The corporate regulator ASIC is suing the broking arm of Macquarie for alleged misreporting of up to $1.5 billion short sales over nearly 15 years.

Lenders are cutting rates and jostling for home loan market share, with more than two dozen lenders cutting fixed rates in the past month, according to Canstar.

Hundreds of Canberrans are having to pay back tens of thousands of dollars at short notice, after finding out they're no longer eligible for home stamp duty concessions.

Annual wage growth lifted to 3.4 per cent in the March quarter, from 3.2 per cent in December. It is the first annual increase in wage growth since the June quarter last year.

U.S. share prices surged on the back of Trump’s tariff backdown, which helped push the local market and the Australian Dollar higher too. Alan Kohler has the details.

Former competition watchdog chair Allan Fels says there's a strong case for an inquiry into the hardware sector and Bunnings role within it.

ABC chief business correspondent Ian Verrender explains Donald Trump's executive order on pharmaceuticals and what the tariff pause between the US and China means for businesses.