Agyata Australia

Regal Partners told investors in an email on Wednesday that Mark Nathan, Zachary Corones and Jovita Khilnani will take lead responsibility for several key funds across eight of its funds. The $23 billion money manager is preparing for the exit of co-founder and market veteran Phil King, who leaves in June 2027. Rather than appoint a new chief investment officer to replace King, Regal has set up a new investment committee.

Former Wall Street dealmaker Jonathan Cutting's private equity firm, 2nd Summit Capital, is buying boat trailer maker Dunbier and Mackay in Australia, its second deal since launching. Dunbier and Mackay is a family-owned company and Australia's largest independent manufacturer of boat trailers, holding a 35 per cent market share. The business also brings more than 300 exclusive dealer relationships.

The Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate to 4.85 per cent, a quarter-point increase. It will intensify fears that Australia is heading for recession and deepen the squeeze on heavily mortgaged households. House prices and discretionary spending will weigh further, and the incentive to save will rise. Residential construction, real estate agents, furniture stores and white goods retailers will feel the effect.

Canva announced on Wednesday a major restructure that will hit 1,271 jobs in Australia. The article says the cuts affect 22 per cent of the design software giant's staff and calls the move a brutal reset. Canva is an Australian multinational software company launched in 2013 that offers a graphic design platform.

Australian household spending rose 0.6 per cent in September 2026 after a 0.1 per cent fall in August, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. Fuel spending jumped 5.4 per cent over the month due to the US-Iran war, while spending for the 12 months to September reached 6.8 per cent against inflation of 4.3 per cent. Health spending rose on GP visits and a late flu season, the ABS said.

Australian shares slipped on Wednesday, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 42.7 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 8844.1 by midday. The broader All Ordinaries lost 40.4 points, or 0.45 per cent, to 8968.5, after the Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85 per cent, its highest mark since late 2008. Moomoo strategist Tapas Strickland said copper fell 2.5 per cent, and all big four banks were in the red as financials lost 0.9 per cent.

The S&P/ASX 200 was down 50.5 points, or 0.6 per cent, at 8836.30 just before 11am AEDT on Wednesday, with eight of its 11 sectors in the red. Tech stocks rose after a rebound in some Big Tech stocks on Wall Street, with NextDC up 5.1 per cent and Megaport jumping 5 per cent. BHP and Rio Tinto fell 0.7 and 0.8 per cent as copper slumped to a seven-week low, while investors digested the Reserve Bank's latest rate hike to an 18-year high.

The Reserve Bank of Australia lifted its cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85 per cent on Tuesday in a split decision, the highest level since November 2008. Council of Small Business Organisations Australia chief executive Skye Cappuccio said small businesses were hit by the rise and urged the government to cut spending ahead of the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook.

Australian software firm Canva announced on Wednesday a shake-up affecting 22% of its workers, co-founder and CEO Melanie Perkins said. She put the number of people who would lose their jobs, be asked to relocate or change roles at 1,271, calling it the hardest moment in the company's thirteen-year history. Backers Blackbird Ventures and Airtree reportedly cut its valuation from A$60bn at the end of last year to about A$49bn earlier this year, amid AI-related costs.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signalled tighter spending after the Reserve Bank raised interest rates for the fifth time this year to an 18-year high of 4.85 per cent on Tuesday. Speaking in Antigua and Barbuda, he said the government needed to look closely at savings and accused the Coalition of rejecting a range of savings measures. Cuts could come as early as the mid-year budget update next month, Albanese said.

Australia's High Court on Wednesday dismissed Uber's appeal, ruling that the rideshare company must pay more than $81 million in NSW payroll tax on fares from the 2015 to 2020 financial years. The justices found Uber's driver contracts obliged drivers to carry riders once accepted, making ride payments 'deemed to be wages'; one of seven justices dissented. NSW Finance Minister Courtney Houssos said Uber should pay its fair share.

David Jones is likely to appoint administrators within 24 hours after talks with its landlords broke down, a source told The West Australian. Scentre Group chief executive Elliott Rusanow said on Wednesday the retailer had not paid rent since September and was in breach. Scentre said an offer to owner Anchorage Capital Partners had been rejected and that David Jones had lodged $45m in bank guarantees, which can be applied against unpaid rent.

A 2.2ha property at 760 Anakie Rd, Lovely Banks, sold for $1.2m after a year on the market and three separate agents. HF Richardson agent Matt Poustie said buyers were wary of delays in the Northern and Western Geelong Growth Area, which is expected to accommodate 110,000 new residents. The state government said in June it would take over planning for four precincts after no plans due since 2023 were submitted.

Australian investors are seeking more exposure to high-growth US technology stocks, setting up strong demand for any local tranche of Anthropic's initial global public offering of up to $US100 billion ($A143 billion). Assuming it succeeds, the AI company would have a market value of around $US1.5 ($A2.1) trillion. Sharesight chief executive Doug Morris told AAP there is pent-up demand from retail investors.

On November 4, 2026, the Reserve Bank raised interest rates for the fifth time this year. The official overnight cash rate sets the base for all other rates, and the Reserve aims to keep inflation at 2 to 3 per cent a year. A survey found only about a quarter of people believe rate rises reduce inflation, while almost 60 per cent think they make it worse. The columnist says rises also benefit savers, because banks must raise the rates they pay depositors.

Investment bank Jefferies bought about 12 per cent of ASX-listed SPC Global, buying 52 million shares on Monday and 106 million on Tuesday. The 108-year-old fruit canner limped through a recapitalisation this year. Activist investor Jeremy Raper is ready to strike at the company.

The Reserve Bank of Australia lifted interest rates to an 18-year high on Tuesday, and its figures showed housing loan commitments 27 per cent below their November 2025 peak. Investor lending fell hardest, a record drop for any hiking cycle, while owner-occupier lending dipped only modestly. The RBA linked the investor slump to the May budget's abolition of negative gearing and curbs on the capital gains tax discount.

S&P/ASX 200 futures were down 22 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 8875 near 6am AEDT, as Australian shares were set to open slightly lower. Falling oil prices boosted Wall Street, where tech stocks led gains and the Philadelphia chip index climbed almost 3 per cent. Brent crude fell 1.2 per cent to around $US103 when US President Donald Trump said Washington would stop billions in funding to Israel after the end of this year.

Updated Nov 4, 2026 – 8.30am, first published at 7.58am Design software giant Canva has made the first-ever round of job cuts in its 13-year history, a huge swingeing redundancy round it says it required to get back to its roots as a small tech start-up. It comes as the $US31 billion company, one of Australia’s most valuable tech start-ups, battles to retain relevance in the face of heightened competition for large artificial intelligence models.

IFM Investors more than doubled its annual profit last year on significant fee growth in its infrastructure and real estate portfolios. The asset manager recorded an after-tax profit of $251.5 million and grew its assets to $291 billion, despite a year of economic uncertainty. Its staff costs surged past $1 billion last year, and the firm invests on behalf of funds including AustralianSuper and Australian Retirement Trust. The firm is a Melbourne-headquartered provider of investment services.