Not All Ports Are a National Security Threat
President Donald Trump's trade war has meant that almost everything to do with China is now viewed through the lens of geopolitics. In 2015, the privately held Shandong-based Landbridge Group — a Chinese logistics, infrastructure, and petrochemical firm — secured a 99-year lease for the strategically significant Port of Darwin, located just off the coast of the Indonesian border and near military bases that routinely host rotations of US Marines in Australia.
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Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Major bank eases home rule rules for these Aussie workers: ‘Cutting red tape'
ANZ has become the latest Big Four bank to ease its home loan lending rules for self-employed Australians. More than two million Aussies work for themselves, but they are typically seen as riskier applicants by the banks and therefore have to meet stricter rules to get a mortgage. ANZ said it was aiming to make it easier for self-employed Aussies to purchase a home. It said the changes were sparked by customer feedback, with small business customers saying they were facing challenges when applying for loans, particularly due to their irregular income patterns. ANZ managing director small to medium enterprise, Paul Presland, said small business owners, freelancers, entrepreneurs and sole traders deserved the same access to homeownership as other workers. RELATED Westpac changes mortgage rules to benefit millions of self-employed Australians Little-known Centrelink perk offers Australian students free flights Hidden way Aussies are cutting $20,000 from their tax bill every year 'These changes are about cutting red tape and recognising the value small businesses bring to our economy,' he said. 'We know they are already juggling enough – banking shouldn't be another pain point.' What are the main changes? ANZ said the changes would position it as a 'market leader' in home lending for small business owners. It continues to accept one year of income financials, rather than the traditional two, for self-employed customers. Some of the key new changes, which are now in effect, include allowing business overdrafts to be spread out over 10 years, rather than seven. The bank said this would act to boost borrowing capacity. When customers have an existing fixed rate of term asset finance, lease or hire purchase, ANZ said it will use the actual repayment when making its assessment, rather than adding the traditional 3 per cent interest rate buffer. Self-employed customers now only need to provide one year of income documentation, rather than two, where they receive income through director fees or company dividends. Major banks simplify lending for self-employed Aussies All of the Big Four banks have announced tweaks to their home loan policies for self-employed applicants in recent months. Commonwealth Bank made the move to accept one-year financials for self-employed customers in October last year, rather than two years. NAB changed its policy earlier this year, with eligible self-employed Aussies only needing to provide a single year's financial statement. Westpac similarly introduced a one-year income assessment, down from the standard two, in July. Various eligibility criteria apply, including around how long the business has been trading for, with most banks requiring an 80 per cent loan-to-value ratio. 1 in 4 small business owners find it hard to get home loan The changes come as recent research by Great Southern Bank found 40 per cent of people thought it was harder to get a home loan as a small business owner. The main hurdles included instability of income, stringent lending criteria, being seen as too high risk, and the complex process of gathering necessary documentation. Marina Michael, a mortgage broker specialising in helping self-employed clients, told Yahoo Finance every bank had a different appetite for self-employed borrowers. 'Traditionally, especially before Covid, every lender was looking at a minimum of two years of financials, including the tax returns, the company tax returns and your individuals, and your notice of assessment,' she said. Another option for people to consider are low doc home loans, where banks can accept recent BAS or recent business bank statements and an accountant's declaration instead of the regular tax returns and financials. However, these often come with a 1 to 1.5 per cent interest rate in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Major EV warning as true battery range for big brands like Tesla and BYD exposed: 'Aussies deserve to know'
Australians considering buying an electric vehicle (EV) have been warned about the real-world battery range on some of the most popular models. Range anxiety has been a thorn in the side of the electric vehicle market for years as Aussie drivers fear they'll run out of juice on a long journey. Major strides have been made to push the maximum battery range for many EV manufacturers; however, these limits have been put to the test on our roads. The Australian Automobile Association grabbed popular models from Tesla, BYD, and Kia to see if they could go as far as they claimed. RELATED Electric vehicle warning as BYD records biggest month of sales in Australia Little-known Centrelink perk offers Australian students free flights ATO warning over $485 billion deadline for thousands just weeks away The AAA's investigation was part of a $14 million Real-World Testing Program to see how cars (including petrol and hybrid models) really performed in the wild. The Program recently discovered 25 out of 30 petrol and hybrid vehicles tested consumed more fuel than their lab results, and more than three-quarters failed to meet expectations. The next round of testing saw EVs taken on urban and rural roads, as well as on a motorway, and they had to contend with real-time traffic. They were also driven inside a lab to see how far the battery would last under perfect circumstances. Carmakers happily boast their vehicles can go certain distances on a single tank or full battery, with the latter used as a huge competitive edge in the EV world. Five electric cars were tested in AAA's program: BYD Atto 3 Tesla Model 3 Tesla Model Y Kia EV6 Smart #3How long did popular EV car batteries last? For the two Teslas, the Model 3 was able to go 513km in the lab, but only 441km on real roads, a 14 per cent difference. The Model Y had an 8 per cent difference, with the car driving 533km in the lab and only 490km outside. The BYD Atto 3 had the biggest inconsistency of 23 per cent, with the lab results showing a battery range of 480km, but a real-world result of just 369km. Kia's EV6 notched 528km in the lab and 484km on real roads, and the Smart #3 had the lowest variation of just 5 per cent, with 455km in the lab and 432km real-world battery range. "Australians deserve to know how vehicles perform on roads," the AAA said. "This testing provides accurate and relevant information to enable more informed decisions for consumers, businesses and fleets buying new light vehicles." Australian Electric Vehicle Association national president Chris Jones blamed the difference in battery range on multiple factors, including high or low temperatures, headwinds, steep terrain, and whether the driver uses air conditioning or heating features during their journey. He said EV makers needed to be more upfront about how far their cars could go so that buyers didn't shy away from them in the future. "It is frustrating that manufacturers are inflating the values when they really ought to be a bit more conservative," Jones said. "I would have thought a 10 per cent difference was reasonable but 20 per cent is pretty bad." Yahoo Finance has approached Tesla, Kia, and BYD for comment. EV subsidies could soon be axed under major overhaul The revelation could serve as a huge blow to the EV industry at a time when subsidies that won over many buyers are on the chopping block. The Productivity Commission is investigating the country's goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and highlighted the generous handouts given to those who buy an electric car. It has recommended to dump the Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemptions and state-based stamp duty discounts for the EV market. 'Now that the Australian Government has implemented the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES), it should phase-out the exemption of electric vehicles from the Fringe Benefits Tax,' the interim report said. The NVES was implemented earlier this year and it gives every car manufacturer a CO2 target that they either have to meet or beat each year. That target is lowered each year until 2029, which will put increased pressure on brands to have zero or low-emissions vehicles in their fleet. 'The EV purchase subsidies and the NVES overlap, as they both promote the purchase of low-emissions vehicles," the Productivity Commission said. 'EV tax discounts subsidise car buyers to opt for EVs, while the NVES is a broader-based policy that aims to increase purchases of low-emissions light vehicles, including both EVs and more fuel-efficient fossil fuel cars.' The suggestion sparked outcry from the EV industry, with Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) CEO Julie Delvecchio saying the incentives proposed to be axed were "finally helping everyday Australians afford an electric car". 'Suggesting we end incentives just as Australia finally catches up to the rest of the developed world with an efficiency standard is short-sighted. We need both - they work together, not in isolation," she while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Australia's AMP half-year earnings improve but shares drag on profit miss
By Sneha Kumar (Reuters) -Australian money manager AMP posted higher half-year earnings, citing strong net cashflows in its wealth platform and margin improvement in its banking unit, but fell short of market expectations, which sent its shares lower. The 176-year-old wealth management firm's stock fell as much as 4.2% to A$1.60, marking its biggest intraday decline in two weeks. It posted six-month underlying net profit of A$131 million ($85.19 million), below Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$136.7 million. CEO Alexis George said the result underscored "continued discipline and delivery of the strategy", citing improving flows in its wealth segment and cautious growth in banking. The AMP Bank division posted a 2.9% rise in profit to A$36 million, with net interest margin (NIM) ticking up to 1.30% from 1.28% a year earlier, aided by fixed-rate loan rollovers and a growing investor segment. For the full year, AMP expects the bank which has been struggling to maintain lending volume growth to maintain net interest margin at around 1.30%. The group's new digital bank AMP Bank GO, launched in February, attracted about 7,500 customers and A$123 million in balances by June-end. Group costs remained a focus, with controllable costs falling 4.4%, helping to offset inflationary pressures and lower investment income. AMP's Platforms segment's profit rose 7.4% to A$58 million, supported by net cash inflows of A$2.3 billion, up nearly 99% year-on-year. New adviser sign-ups and rising demand for its Managed Portfolios helped lift assets-under-management to A$153.9 billion. Analysts at Jefferies attributed the miss to lower underlying earnings from savings and investments and group's corporate division. "Overall, we view this as a solid result and are not overly concerned by the miss versus consensus," added Jefferies. AMP declared interim dividend of 2 Australian cents per share, in-line with last year's payout. ($1 = 1.5378 Australian dollars) Sign in to access your portfolio
