3h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 8:30pmMarket snapshot
ASX 200 futures: +0.3% to 9,002 points
Australian dollar: -0.4% to 70.5 US cents
Dow Jones:Â -1.6% to 48,823 points
S&P 500:Â -1.2% to 6,826 points
Nasdaq:Â -1.4% to 22,561 points
FTSE: Flat at 10,864 points
EuroStoxx: -0.4% to 627 points
Spot gold: +2.4% to $US5,224/ounce
Brent crude: -0.3% to $US71.55/barrel
Iron ore: -0.1% to $US99.27/tonne
Bitcoin: -5.1% to $US64,131
Prices current around 7:30am AEDT.
Live updates on the major ASX indices:
2m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:51pm
Shelving China actions harms US national security, House Democrats say
The latest developments involving the US and its unilateral 15% tariffs imposed by president Donald Trump have added to tensions around global trade.
And this particularly applies to the US-China relationship.
Democrats have accused Trump, a Republican, of “sacrifising America’s national and economic security to stabilise relations with China and resolve the trade war the president himself started”.
They have described as “troubling” the Trump administration’s decision to pause key tech security measures aimed at Beijing, which they say jeopardises US national security in the interest of steadying relations with China.
In a letter sent to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, the Democratic policians raise questions about the shelving of a ban on China Telecom’s US operations.
They also question the proposed bans on US sales of routers by TP-Link and the US internet businesses of China Unicom and China Mobile.
“The Administration’s actions suggest a troubling pattern of sacrificing America’s national and economic security to stabilize relations with China and resolve the trade war the President himself started,” write Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Sydney Kamlager-Dove, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs panel’s South and Central Asia Subcommittee.
Meeks and Kamlager-Dove asked Lutnick to brief the committee on any assessments his agency made of the national security and technology security consequences of the decisions and whether it is true that the office charged with scrutinising foreign tech threats was told to focus on countries other than China.
The letter is part of a growing chorus of concerns raised by Democratic lawmakers that the Trump administration is reining in any US government action that could upset Beijing following a trade truce reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump in October.
With reporting by Reuters
10m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:43pm
CGT impacting productivity
It’s perceived the capital gains tax concession impedes productivity because money is directed towards property rather than more productive investments.
Labor Senator Ellie Whitaker has asked the OCD where the money could go instead.
Cathal Leslie said, “… it could be the education sector, the technology sector — it would depend on what activities are not currently feasible based on current arrangements.”
12m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:41pm
BHP hits record high
Copper producer BHP (OK, OK, they still make a fair bit from iron ore) has hit a record high share price, $55.99.
Shares are up 1.8% in early trading.
18m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:35pm
Our AI future
Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy Andrew Charlton is speaking at an event in Sydney at the moment.
Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy Andrew Charlton (ABC News: John Gunn)
He’s speaking at the Australian Business Economists Annual Forecasting Conference and gist is that we can invest and make use of AI, or let it happen to us.
We’ll have more shortly.
24m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:29pm
Tariff chaos: ‘Here we go again’
Sometimes the tariff chat can seem ethereal, almost theoretical. It’s not.
A great read from my colleagues David Taylor and Emilia Terzon about deep concern in the business community with US trade policy uncertainty.
This comes after the highest American court struck down tariffs, leading US President Donald Trump to announce a 15% levy across the board.
The US Supreme Court voted to invalidate many of the US president’s tariff hikes, which targeted particular countries with steep tariffs.
The ruling on tariffs is a hugely consequential decision that has infuriated the president, who is now looking for workarounds.
Chief executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Andrew McKellar, said while the decision was “expected”, it “throws a number of things into uncertainty”.
“The US administration won’t give up [on its trade policy agenda],” he said.
Swimwear business owner Steve Philpott is an Australian exporter who has to navigate the economic environment.
His summary is probably helpful broadly in the world of import/export.
“I just kind of laughed to myself and [thought], ‘Here we go again.'”
32m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:21pm
Is the capital gains tax concession on property hurting equality?
I’m following the Senate Select Committee on the Operation of the Capital Gains Tax Discount.
It’s live now.
Senator McKim just asked the OECD, which is in the hot seat now, if reducing the capital gains tax (CGT) concession for property would reduce inequality in Australia.
The OECD’s Diana Hourani responded saying, “It would get at one of the drivers of inequality.”
38m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:15pm
FedEx wants the tariffs back, thank you
Mega parcel deliverer FedEx is suing the US government for the return of emergency tariffs imposed on goods after the Supreme Court found US President Donald Trump had no authority to impose them.
More to come.
41m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:12pm
Stan makes money
Results for Nine’s streamer, Stan, give us a little insight into the world of streaming.
Revenue growth was +15% for the half year to December 2025, to $282.7 million.
Take out costs and the profit is $36.6 million (up 24%).
The company puts this down to the (then imminent) Winter Olympic Games and drama Yellowstone.
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It says the 14% increase in costs was “a result primarily of the new Premier League contract”. Outside of sport, its costs were “marginally lower”.
49m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 11:03pm
ASX 200 opens higher
The flagship ASX 200 index of our 200 largest companies is up in the opening minutes of trading.
It’s 23.5 points higher, up 0.25% to 9,050.3 points at the time of writing.
56m agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:57pm
Nine deals after the results
In case you’re wondering, the flurry of news from Nine Entertainment in January …
Buying outdoor advertising firm QMS Media for $850 millionSelling Nine Radio (2GB, 3AW, 4BC, 6PR and more) for $56 millionConverting NBN Television from part of the business to an affiliate (mainly affecting Newcastle region)
… all came after the results were finalised.
We’ll hear about the nitty-gritty of that in future releases.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:49pm
CPI out at 1130 AEDT tomorrow
Have we got CPI coming out tomorrow?
– chrisso
You got it Chrisso, the latest inflation figures will be released tomorrow morning.Â
And we’ll be here to dissect them for you.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:44pm
Nine Entertainment results out
Nine Entertainment is an attention-monetising behemoth that spans newspapers, TV networks and streaming service Stan, among others.
It no longer has real estate website Domain after selling it to US-based CoStar group.
Revenue for the half year to December 2025 was $1.05 billion, a 5% drop from the same period a year earlier.
Group EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) was +6% to $192 million and Net Profit After Tax was $95.2 million, up 30% on the same period a year earlier.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:37pm
Woodside full-year profit down
Oil and gas producer Woodside Energy has reported an -8% drop in full-year profit as lower realised prices outweighed a slight increase in production.
The company posted an underlying net profit after tax of $2.65 billion for the year ended December 31, falling from $2.88 billion for the year earlier, but above analyst consensus of $2.54 billion.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:30pm
Does the bank ever check?
As Adelaide’s story points out increasing numbers of Australian houses are underinsured or not insured at all. For the banks , is this not a growing concern where they have increasing numbers of mortgages on houses that if destroyed (fire , flood whatever) would leave the bank with no way to recoup their money.
– Phillip
Thanks Phillip for raising a question I’ve always wondered about, as insurance premiums have risen.
Banks insist on seeing “certificates” and proof that a property is insured before they will issue a mortgage. Makes sense, right? They want to know that if the asset literally burns down, they (the institution, more so than the punter) have some certainty.
But, beyond that initial look, do banks ever check that people with mortgages maintain their insurance?
I have a mortgage and have certainly never been asked.
Have you?
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:15pmSeven boss abruptly exits Southern Cross ahead of results
In news to hit the ASX after the close of trade late yesterday, Southern Cross Media announced chief executive Jeff Howard was gone, effective immediately.
It follows long-time Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes stepping down on Friday, a move than had been flagged when the media merger between Southern Cross and Seven was announced. It ended Stokes’s three-decade involvement with the Seven Network.
Yesterday, Southern Cross said Howard’s ousting was to “accelerate implementation of its strategy” post-merger.
Howard had been boss of Seven since 2024 and, before that, chief financial officer since 2020.
It came on the eve of the media firm’s results, announced this morning.
Heith Mackay-Cruise will serve as interim executive chairman, replacing both Stokes and Howard, as a search for a new CEO begins.
Southern Cross reported a half-year loss of $7.4 million and suspended its interim dividend.
Underlying net profit rose to $12.8 million.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 10:08pm
Payments inquiry underway
More smart-people-talking action today at the House Standing Committee on Economics.
They’re looking at our payments system.
Or to put it into the language they prefer: Inquiry into Schemes, Digital Wallets and Innovation in the Payments Sector.
You can watch along at this link.
1h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 9:59pm
Capital gains tax in the spotlight
The discount to the capital gains tax (GPT) and its implications for housing affordability are in focus this week, with a Greens-led Senate inquiry beginning public hearings in Melbourne.
Financial journalist and author Alan Kohler appeared on the first day in a private capacity, having spent much of the past seven years researching housing affordability issues.
 Alan Kohler told The Business that house prices started to double the rate of wages when the capital gains tax discount was applied in September 1999.
Why? A part of Australia’s inequality problem is caused by the fact that the capital gains tax is discounted at a higher rate than inflation.
“We tax capital much less than we tax labour. The people who make capital income are generally rich. People who generally earn all of their money from working are generally less well off,” he says.
But he says abolishing or winding back the capital gains tax concession could have an adverse effect on renters by pushing up rents.
That’s because at the moment, investors are prepared to receive lower rents as they expect to not only make a capital gain on the property, but to also only pay tax on half the capital gain.
 “They’re prepared to accept a lower yield,” he says.
“And if the capital gains tax discount goes away, then they probably will charge higher rents.”
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2h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 9:51pm
More on how some homeowners are reducing their home insurance premiums
I pointed to the great video package from Adelaide Miller and the team about insurance premiums.
If you’re more of a reader, feast below.
2h agoMon 23 Feb 2026 at 9:46pmWall Street slides led by drop on the Dow
Here are the final falls from a down day on US indices:
Dow -1.7%S&P 500 -1%Nasdaq -1.1%