Alan Kohler is one of Australia’s most experienced commentators and journalists. Alan is the founder of Eureka Report, Australia’s most successful investment newsletter, and Business Spectator, a 24-hour free business news and commentary website. He also hosts Inside Business, a half-hour Sunday programme on the ABC, is the finance presenter on the ABC News - and producer of the nightly graph (or two).
In this week's essential reading guide Bartholomeusz predicts a Ford domino effect, Koukoulas runs the ruler over Australia's economy, Burgess foresees a carbon flip and Irvine surveys a Bernanke brainwave.
There is room for reform at the nation's tax office but Joe Hockey's proposal to knock tax administration and policing into place could be counterproductive.
In this week's essential reading guide Bartholomeusz predicts a Ford domino effect, Koukoulas runs the ruler over Australia's economy, Burgess foresees a carbon flip and Irvine surveys a Bernanke brainwave.
There is room for reform at the nation's tax office but Joe Hockey's proposal to knock tax administration and policing into place could be counterproductive.
In the ultra-fluid technology sector, many an acquisition shock has paid off – and vice versa. Yahoo's big cheque for Tumblr isn’t the only deal that may be judged differently in hindsight.
The cloud ERP vendor is starting to move up the software as a service food chain but it will have to surmount a few hurdles before its ready for big time.
The Solar 2013 conference in Melbourne carries the theme of an industry trying to prevent a possible race to the bottom, where weaker firms damage the industry in compromising quality for price.
The reverberations from the Newman government’s bulldozing of Queensland’s vegetation protection laws will be felt in Canberra, with the Coalition's Direct Action plan now at risk of a $1 billion budget blow-out.
CEOs outline changing views on corporate spending and profits, their economic expectations and political dissatisfaction, including advice for Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott.
UK-based Zeebox wants to be the intermediary for all social media-television interactions. It will not only have to lure viewers, but the networks themselves.
Its banks are full of bad loans, its financial system is a mess. And Europe’s leaders are out in force to declare support for Slovenia – a surefire sign it will, within weeks, be the next bailout victim.
Assumptions Europe's crisis is mainly monetary are a mistake. In fact, the single currency has only brought to light the catastrophes of countries’ respective economies.
Between leaked Bundesbank documents challenging the ECB and similar comments from a German finance chief, it looks like Berlin is seriously considering its position on a euro break-up.
Europe’s average debt to GDP ratio is shrinking but the closer details are devilish. And hardly anyone’s playing by agreed EU Stability and Growth Pact rules anymore.
Europeans don't appreciate their own companies. Seen simply as job dispensaries and tax machines, the region won't know their worth until they're gone.
Europe's badly designed monetary union is being defended at all costs. With the EU now meddling in Portugal's separation of judicial powers, maybe it's time the real alternative was broached.
Down south they hate the euro for one reason, in the north it's for another. Within countries there are even more divisions and because of this the euro lingers.
The wild rise to a Cyprus 'solution' has left European bank depositors fearful, cross-country resentment boiling and faith in policymaker competence completely destroyed.
The decision to cut into Cyrpiots' bank deposits is the latest broken rule in a long list since the euro was created. Europe as such has become a sovereign risk.
The Microsoft competition case in Europe has delivered nothing to consumers, a little to the EU budget and a lot to lawyers. It's another failure for absurd antitrust laws.
Recent data reveals claims that Europe's monetary crisis was ebbing are false. And the window of opportunity for Europe's dawdling leaders to effect real change is closing.
Morgan Stanley calculations have the debt levels of some major Western governments at 800 to 1000 per cent of GDP. Central banks can only support this trajectory for so long.
Germans are all aflutter about some abrupt increases in their usually benign house prices. The ironic thing is that while there are some domestic drivers, the main factor is the debt crisis response.
Europe's slow fall from geopolitical and economic grace was highlighted at a recent bi-continental conference in Chile where the South Americans led the diplomatic tango.
Cyprus is in a similar spot to Greece but its crisis is more urgent, the creditors more sinister and the timing much worse. However, fear of creating a eurozone precedent means the tiny nation will survive its sins.
Angela Merkel's personal style is the antithesis of charisma: it suits Europe's can-kicking, buck-passing and sleep-walking perfectly. And it fascinates German voters, who are certain to elect her for another four years.
David Cameron has impressively dodged taking a position on the one issue that could tear his government asunder: Europe. But once in power, you can only avoid such a big issue for so long – or can you?
By choosing to resettle in one of the highest taxed countries in Europe, actor Gérard Depardieu has highlighted just how extreme François Hollande's new tax regime is.
In Germany, as much of the Western world, allegiance to political and other groups is dissolving. It's not clear how such societies can move past superficial decision making to productive government.
Despite decrees of an end to the eurozone crisis, most 'breakthroughs' have only been short-lived and the ECB's 'all costs' promise may not remain feasible.
