If you’re new to investing and want to know what to read first – especially as reports land in Australia’s company reporting season – here’s where to start.
Articles on Business basics
Displaying 1 - 20 of 22 articles
Spoiler: it’s tricky. Common valuation approaches run into hurdles when dealing with something as complex as an entire economy.
You’ve almost definitely shopped at a franchise. But how does the model, ‘cloning’ a business to be run by independent owner-operators, actually work?
Trade can be weaponised by governments in various ways. The biggest casualties, however, are often our wallets.
We may have to get used to hearing a whole lot more of Donald Trump’s favourite word. So how exactly do tariffs work – and who pays them?
When the price of most types of products goes up, demand for them tightens. Except for a couple of special cases.
Like its close cousin depreciation, amortisation is an important concept in accounting. How and why do we write off the cost of assets over time?
It’s certainly been in the news a lot this year. But is it the same for people and companies? What’s the famous Chapter 11? Is bankruptcy always the end of the road?
Any mention of the ‘R’ word can trigger anxiety. But not all definitions of recession are the same, and not being in one doesn’t necessarily mean people aren’t feeling economic pain.
Using debt to invest can magnify gains – but it can also seriously magnify losses. It isn’t for the faint-hearted.
Company earnings season is a blockbuster event in the world of finance. But it matters for the rest of us, too, so it’s important to understand the basics.
How do we know if prices are going up across the whole economy, or just for some products? One solution is to create an index of price changes across the entire economy – but this isn’t perfect.
Across the economy, similar things tend to have similar prices. Have these been driven to their lowest natural level by competition? Or are firms abusing market power to charge whatever they want?
And what’s a ‘cooling off’ period? Don’t believe Bluey episode ‘The Sign’ – the Heeler’s house sale is potentially a contract nightmare.
Australia’s progressive tax system is designed to ensure that those who earn more contribute more accordingly. One of the biggest challenges is ensuring it stays fair over time.
Financial years create a standardised timeframe for business reporting, government budgeting and tax collection. But their start and end dates vary around the world.
The use of family trusts in Australia is more widespread than many realise. How do they work, and why are they controversial?
If companies are ‘people’ too in the eyes of the law - why are they taxed differently from the rest of us?
Guzman y Gomez is listing on the Australian Stock Exchange. What exactly does this mean, and how might it help them sell more burritos?
One common oversimplification is that it’s just about countries making and trading what they’re best at. Yes, but there’s a bit more to it.
Top contributors
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Associate Professor, Finance, The University of Melbourne
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Associate Professor, University of Sydney
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Professor, School of Economics; Director of the Centre for Applied Economic Research, UNSW
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PhD Student (Tax Law), Griffith University
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Professor of Economics, Australian National University
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Lecturer in Contract Law, The University of Queensland
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Professor of Economics, Monash University
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Associate Professor, Torrens University Australia
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Professor and Head, Department of Accounting, Monash University
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Professor of Accounting and Deputy Head of School - Business, University of Southern Queensland
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Lecturer Taxation, Griffith University
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Lecturer in Economics, University of Tasmania
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Professor of Financial Accounting, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Accounting & Business Information Systems, The University of Melbourne
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Associate Professor in Economics, Queensland University of Technology