Hip pocket

New research shows Australian consumer confidence has fallen to among the worst in the world.

Australian economy

Australian consumer confidence drops quicker than nearly anywhere

Stubborn inflation and interest rate hikes are leaving Aussies among the world’s most gloomy in their economic outlook.

8:01pm Oct 18, 2026

Major brands are reducing their footprint across David Jones stores.

Retail

Major brands slashing floorspace at David Jones

Country Road Group is reducing its footprint at the iconic department store.

11:49pm Oct 6, 2026

Close up macro color image depicting an abstract view of a collection of debit and credit cards and numeric digits. Room for copy space.

Money

Credit card surcharges scrapped, but customers will pay in other ways

Credit and debit card surcharges were scrapped on Thursday, October 1, saving consumers about $1.6 billion every year.

9:36pm Sep 30, 2026

The CBA has today hiked its fixed rates by as much as 0.48 percentage points.

Interest rates

CBA joins rest of big four, hikes fixed rates ahead of RBA decision next week

The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) has joined the rest of the big four banks in hiking its fixed rates as analysts predict the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will hike rates next week and then again in November.

2:21am Sep 22, 2026

When Melbourne couple Shaz and Daz bought a used MG as an engagement present, they believed they were dealing with one of Australia’s most reputable national used car networks.

Consumer

Running on empty: Major used car dealer OzCar under fire over claims of ‘vanishing’ MG

For Shaz and Daz, the engagement present quickly soured.

9:45am Sep 21, 2026

Wealthy retirees can be eligible for concessions simply because they hold a pensioner or seniors card.

Cost of living

Wealthy Aussies collect billions in poorly targeted cost-of-living relief

The top 40 per cent of Australians by income or wealth received a combined $3.6 billion in benefits this year that were designed to provide cost-of-living relief but were not means-tested, the Policy Institute of Australia claims.