Australia’s universities say they are over-regulated—and the chief executive of Universities Australia (UA), Luke Sheehy, has just secured a promise from education minister Jason Clare to give his members a break.

In this week’s podcast, Nucleus Wealth’s Chief Investment Officer, Damien Klassen, breaks down the rise of HALO companies — the resilient, pricing-power businesses proving largely “immune” to AI disruption — exploring why they continue to outperform, what protects their economics from technological shocks, and how investors can position around this defensive theme.

The tsunami of auction activity is beginning to weigh on home values in Melbourne and Sydney.

Roll the tape.

The worst treasurer since Jim Cairns, and the dumbest since Wayne Swan is certainly not the unluckiest.

Business Council of Australia Chief Executive Bran Black delivered a keynote address to the Universities Australia Solutions Summit that repeated the same old myths and fallacies about the vital importance that international students play in the Australian economy.

TME with the charts.

Victoria has legislated a target to source 95% of its electricity from renewable energy by 2035.

The Grattan Institute argues that NSW could make 1 million additional homes feasible to build by copying Victoria’s planning rules that allow terraces and three‑storey apartments “as of right” across most residential zones.

The ferrous complex closed the jaws again yesterday.

The usual suspects are putting the boot in as One Nation has proposed a new royalty on Australian gas production, aiming to raise $10bn–$13bn annually by charging producers $1.70–$2 per gigajoule based on output rather than profits.

When the final tally of results for the last federal election was released, it revealed that One Nation received 6.4% of the primary vote in the lower house.

The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) has released its National Greenhouse Gas Inventory for the September quarter of 2025.

The Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) has attacked the proposed reduction in the capital gains tax (CGT) discount, arguing that: Reducing the CGT discount (from 50% to 25%) would push landlords to raise rents to compensate for lower after‑tax capital gains.

ABS private capex numbers are out and are impressive, if rather narrow.

Victoria’s infrastructure program—intended to support a fast‑growing population—has been undermined by corruption and lawlessness.

Charts from TME.

A record 760,000 Australians aged over 65 are now in the workforce—the highest number since records began in 1995 and up nearly 20% since 2022.

Data from China’s Golden Week Lunar New Year holiday is filtering through, and it’s another bust, after all. The hospitality industry’s growth momentum from long holidays before Lunar New Year (LNY) Golden Week strengthened but it was all about numbers not per capita spending..

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen is celebrating the tiny 0.4% decline in Australia’s transport emissions in the year to September 2025, which Bowen claims is “proof” that his government’s heavy subsidisation of battery electric vehicles (EVs) is working.

DXY traded sideways as the American madman couldn’t stop loving the sound of his own voice with the longest SOTU ever.

In the debate over the appropriate level of migration into Australia, the argument is often made that there would be significant economic downsides if a major reduction in intake were to be realised.