Tim Treadgold

Doomed from the day it was conceived, and rightly so. That's the verdict on Singapore's proposed takeover of the Australian Securities Exchange.

Artificial market manipulation most often leads to blowback, thanks to the immutable laws of supply and demand.

In calmer times Australia would not be asked to choose between friendship with China or the U.S. These are not normal times, and we might soon be asked that awful question.

It seems the BRICs aren’t in as strong a position as many would have hoped.

Most investors rely on their brokers for share tips, which a recent survey has shown could be a rather stupid thing to do.

The MRRT will alter the face of the mining sector.

Gold up. Dollar up. Oil up. Shares up. Last night's world market action sounds too good to be true, and it was.

The protracted sell-off of Alinta may be a glimpse into the future for Telstra.

Get ready for the pricking of the gold bubble.

The federal government is picking up where consumers left off pre-GFC by spending beyond its means.

Is a price of $US1300 an ounce high enough for the Australian Government to consider adding gold to its mining super-profits tax?

Are calls to stop proposed gas projects leading to an accident waiting to happen?

Diamond demand is rising, and gold is at a record high price -- either the boom is back, or investors are buying anything to dodge the crumbling U.S.

Recent form doesn’t provide much reason for enthusiasm when it comes to some upcoming floats.

Rural Australia almost cost Julia Gillard her job. Rural China could ensure that she keeps it for a very long time.

BHP Billiton’s $US40bn offer for a Canadian fertiliser maker has a few pundits scratching their heads.

The stock markets of the world have been in decline for the past month as investors fret about a double dip recession, while the official data says global recovery is underway.

Centamin’s move to the AIM in London last year has put it in the right place to attract British and European investment.

Property investment is supposed to be as safe as houses but two events in the past week point to that age-old belief being flushed around the S-bend in a wake-up call for anyone expecting a rapid recovery in the flat real estate market.

The common thread linking the raw ingredients of chocolate and stainless steel is an attempt by rich investors to corner the market in a commodity to control future prices - a development which, oddly, is good news for WA.

A Chinese carmaker is following the lead of the Japanese and South Koreans in the 1960s and 1980s.

It's a radical thought but the next official interest rate move in Australia could be down rather than up as most economists are predicting - and the next move for gold could be up, rather than down.

A close look overseas reveals a potential shortage of commodities.

No-one should invest on the strength of a handful of political opinion polls but enough evidence is emerging to cause smart money to start thinking about what Tony Abbott might do to your portfolio.

Iluka Resources has had some good news of late, but many may have missed it.

If the new mining tax is so bad for small iron ore companies that a fresh anti-tax advertising campaign is required why have their share prices risen over the past week and not fallen?

The minerals resource rent tax might spell the end for magnetite iron ore.

"It's China, stupid." With apologies to former U.S. president Bill Clinton, that's the big issue Australia should be debating in the current election campaign, but isn't.

Commodity trader Glencore could be set to float, a sure sign of its confidence in the future of the resource sector.

If you thought the dead hand of Canberra had been removed from the resources sector you are sadly wrong.

The new mining tax puts most of its chips on China’s growth continuing.

If bets were placed on the chances of pigs flying over Perth, or a former president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions criticising employers for paying their workers high wages, it's a fair chance that the flying pigs would get shorter odds.