Q+A

australia is facing what could be an exceptionally intense el niño, and the consequences could extend well beyond hotter weather and bushfire risk. food production, electricity supply, insurance, construction and supply chains could all be affected.

sean aylmer speaks with dr graeme riddell, climate and sustainability consulting leader, asia pacific at marsh, about how extreme weather flows through the economy, what it could mean for household costs, and the “zero regrets” moves businesses should be making now.

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coal remains one of the world’s biggest energy sources - and with conflict in the middle east putting energy security back in focus, the debate over its future is becoming more complicated.

sean aylmer speaks with michelle manook, ceo of future coal, formerly the world coal association, about whether predictions of coal’s decline have been premature. they also look at the potential for technologies such as carbon capture and storage, and why michelle believes australia needs to rethink the way it approaches its enormous coal resources.

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the headlines have been dominated by inflation, stronger-than-expected economic growth and the prospect of another interest rate hike. but what's the outlook through a business lens?

michael thompson is joined by economist stephen koukoulas for a look at five reasons australian businesses can be more optimistic right now – from rising investment and resilient household spending to wages, lower government demand and the global economy.

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text messages can be one of the most effective ways for businesses to reach customers - but there’s a fine line between useful communication and something that feels like spam.

michael thompson speaks with paul diamond, head of smb customer success, apac at sinch, about when businesses should use sms or whatsapp, why relevance and timing matter, the rules around consent and opting out, and how businesses can protect customer trust as scammers become increasingly sophisticated.

sinch is a supporter of fear & greed.

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the australian economy is holding up better than expected. gdp grew 2.1 per cent over the year to june, consumer spending remains resilient and households are still managing to save - despite three interest rate rises and stubborn inflation.

michael thompson speaks with amp deputy chief economist diana mousina about what the latest gdp numbers tell us about australian households, whether economic growth and sticky inflation have increased the risk of another interest rate rise in september, and why the surge in global bond yields matters.

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australian businesses are pouring money into artificial intelligence — but many still don't know whether it's actually paying off. new research from elastic suggests one in three businesses exceeded their ai budget last financial year, while just 8% are tracking ai's contribution to revenue or cost savings.

sean aylmer speaks with jeremy pell, country manager anz at elastic, about why ai spending is blowing out, how businesses can measure the return they're getting, and why the next phase could be about matching different ai models to different jobs.

to find out more, check out elastic's information on tokenmaxxing.   

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australia’s fy26 reporting season looked reasonably strong on the surface, with aggregate profits rising by around 11.6%. but underneath the headline numbers, the recovery was much narrower - and investors were often more interested in what companies said about fy27 than the profits they had just reported.

michael thompson speaks with roger montgomery, founder and chief investment officer at montgomery investment management, about his 10 lessons from reporting season. they discuss why consumers are still spending but demanding value, expensive bank valuations, the limits of cost-cutting, opportunities in healthcare and why stock selection is becoming increasingly important.

this is general information only, and you should seek advice tailored to your circumstances before making investment decisions.

find out more: https://fearandgreed.com.au/

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a hotter-than-expected inflation result and surprisingly strong household spending have changed the outlook for interest rates, with another rba hike now looking increasingly likely.

michael thompson is joined by economist stephen koukoulas for the week ahead, looking at what this week's gdp figures will tell us about the strength of the economy, and why stephen has changed his call on rates.

they also look at building approvals and the balance of payments, and ask why the rba has scheduled its crucial september rates decision just one day before the next inflation figures are released.

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wesfarmers released its full-year results yesterday, and while bunnings and kmart are still booming, the conglomerate is facing a familiar retail challenge: labour, energy, transport and supply-chain costs are rising, while australian households remain under pressure.

michael thompson speaks with wesfarmers chief financial officer anthony gianotti about how the owner of bunnings, kmart and officeworks is using productivity gains and artificial intelligence to keep prices down.

they discuss the early results from ai shopping assistants, what wesfarmers is seeing from consumers, the advantage of kmart’s anko brand and why officeworks is being reshaped around technology.

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bitcoin has rallied sharply, but buying it and hoping the price rises is only one way to approach crypto. investors can buy and hold, earn staking rewards or move into riskier territory through leveraged trading.

in the second instalment of fear & greed's monthly series with coinbase, sean aylmer speaks with hassan ahmed, country director for singapore at coinbase, about how newcomers should approach crypto. 

they discuss the importance of position sizing, how staking and leverage work, whether bitcoin is becoming less volatile, and the emerging prospect of ai agents trading on an investor’s behalf.

coinbase is a supporter of fear & greed. this is general information only, and you should seek advice tailored to your circumstances before making investment decisions.

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