Tim Treadgold

If the Queensland election was not an event unique to that State, as seems likely, then it might be time for investors to adjust their portfolios ahead of the inevitable change in Canberra, such as

Troy Buswell’s kidding if he thinks stamp duty has nothing to do with people’s reluctance to buy a house.

If the global economy is really improving after five years in the sin bin, why are the central banks of the world buying gold?That is a question which can only have a disturbing answer.

Australia is likely to benefit from any constriction in the world’s supply of raw materials.

There are some first-rate local stocks out there if you look beyond the headlines.

The price of iron ore in China, not the antics of the iron ore rich Rinehart family, is what Australia should be watching because signs continue to emerge of a big future price fall.

The longevity of Lego provides a lesson in retail survival and adaptation.

It’s not easy to get inside the mind of a High Court judge, but when Justice Gummow used the word “Orwellian” last week in the latest instalment of ASIC v Andrew Forrest a bell tinkled in my mind.

Driverless trains proposed by Rio Tinto are the thin edge of the wedge and not in Australia’s long-term interests.

A quick way to ruin a business is to penalise successful employees and reward failures, which is what seems to be happening in Australia with the unbalanced re-distribution of the goods and service

Some US brokers are betting on sub-prime bonds again, which should sound a warning to investors everywhere.

Energy costs to business will cause headaches for the federal government as the carbon tax approaches.

There is no law against providing lousy financial advice, but there ought to be, and the first person investigated should be the man in charge of Australia’s finances, Wayne Swan.

The emerging pattern of parsimony should, over time, filter down through all levels of the corporate world.

It’s a long walk from Perth to Paris, but Australia took two more steps on the road to Europe last week thanks to politicians playing personal popularity games.

Making the right call on the world economy could make, or lose, businesses a lot of money.

Recent warning about slowed global growth should be heeded, and risk avoided in 2012.

Everyone loves a bargain. But, there comes a time when cheap is too cheap, as the world is discovering with falling prices destabilising industries, and entire economies.

Perth’s quest to be considered a serious international city has been boosted by a recent report.

New Year is always a good time for starting a diet, and while WA has been expanding rapidly thanks to the resources boom it seems likely that the feast is over, for now.

It is not the season to be jolly as credit markets continue to crunch banks and governments in a low-growth world.

Will China be the next financial domino to fall? That is a question which was once unthinkable, but which is now being openly discussed, with serious potential consequences for Australia.

The economic clouds over Europe call into question some of the more optimistic projections for local projects.

Are we watching two world-class con jobs, or just another struggle between government and the free market?

Business and political leaders need to consider what happens after there’s nothing left to dig up.

Would you prefer to deposit your money in a bakery or a bank? In Australia, the bank wins every time. In Europe, some people see their local baker as a better bet than the local bank.

In time, faceless proxy vigilantes could destabilise boards to suit their own agenda.

To understand the frightening dimension of the financial crisis unfolding in Europe you need to do two things.

Australia can’t avoid being affected by the looming global shortage of available money.

Is Australia really an island when it comes to the economy? That’s a question with a potentially nasty answer as we fiddle with incomprehensible taxes and the rest of the world burns.

A major new source of energy is emerging that could change the way the world economy functions.

Claremont and Dumbleyung do not have much in common, except in a drought, which for the wheat-belt town is when shops shut because it hasn’t rained, and in ritzy Claremont it’s when shops shut beca