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7 October 2026
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The 30% minimum tax on capital gains sits at the heart of the budget's proposed reforms. Yet the mechanics reveal anomalies that introduce unexpected distortions that raise questions about its design.
Raising the GST when inflation jumps sounds clever on paper, until we examine how it may play out in practice. What is pitched as a simple inflation fix can lead to a sharp turn in the wrong direction for prices.
The 2026 budget has reignited Australia’s tax reform debate, but more work remains. Beneath the surface lies a harder question: what structural reforms are needed to make the country's tax system fit for the future?
The impact of energy policy on inflation in Australia is often overlooked. Transitioning to renewable energy can lead to inflated costs that affect the entire economy and productivity growth.
Mark Carney has spoken of a rupture in the rules based system that has governed the world since 1945. That rupture means nations like Australia will need to boost defence spending and find savings elsewhere.
The US has elevated energy to a national security priority, tying cheap, reliable power to economic strength, AI leadership, and sovereignty. This analyses the new framework and its implications for Australia.
Trump may be right on two trends: nations are shifting from aspiration to essentials and from global dependence to self-reliance, pushing capital toward security, infrastructure, and energy.
The Liberal Party has released an energy policy that favours the economy over emissions reduction targets and while it's a good start, more can more done to get the right balance to ensure our continued prosperity.
The Future Fund says it will not be paying defined benefit pensions until at least 2033 - raising as many questions as answers. This points to an increasingly uncertain future for Australia's sovereign wealth fund.
Five mega trends point to risks of a more inflation prone and lower growth environment. This, along with rich market valuations, should constrain medium term superannuation returns to around 5% per annum.
When change comes we have three paths: ignore it, try to soften its blow, or adapt to it. Australia leans hard on mitigation for climate change but neglects adaptation, leaving us exposed and unprepared.
With rising home prices and falling affordability, political leaders preach reform. But asset disclosures show many are heavily invested in property - raising doubts about whose interests housing policy really protects.
Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.
A high-profile dividend cut and a prominent fund manager’s apology have reignited a long-running debate. If investors can access similar exposures more cheaply and efficiently elsewhere, what exactly is keeping LICs alive?
For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.
The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.
Reversionary pensions have long been a staple of SMSF estate planning, but are they still the best option? Meg Heffron revisits a once-clear favourite and asks whether changing super rules have shifted the balance.
Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.