North Asia correspondent Michael Smith explains China’s U-turn on COVID-zero, whether it will work and what it means for both the global economy and Xi Jinping’s grip on power.

Background reading:

How Xi’s great COVID-19 pivot is actually going Experts and even China’s own health authorities are now predicting 90 per cent of the country’s 1.4 billion people will become infected in the fast-paced reopening.
Mass lockdowns or mass deaths: Xi’s COVID-19 dilemma Following a week of extraordinary protests, China has reached the point of no return. How Xi manages the road out from his COVID zero policy will reverberate around the world.
'I feared being disappeared': Inside my escape from China Welcome to life in Xi Jinping’s China. Where the authorities can enter your home in the middle of the night to intimidate and harass you when you are not even suspected of a crime.
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Xi Jinping's COVID gamble

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This week on The Fin podcast, economics correspondent Michael Read and education editor Julie Hare explain why net migration spiked, how the government and the opposition plan to rein it in and what deep cuts would mean for universities, the jobs market and economic growth.
This podcast is sponsored by AICD
Further reading:

Hard truths: What immigration cuts really mean for the economy

The latest migration debate has so far been framed in terms of its benefits, but little regard has been given to the costs of closing the door on skilled workers.

Hard truths: What immigration cuts really mean for the economy

The latest migration debate has so far been framed in terms of its benefits, but little regard has been given to the costs of closing the door on skilled workers.

Universities brace for foreign student cuts of up to 95pc

Both sides of politics say the reductions are needed to relieve housing pressure and both plans would deliver a huge shock to the $48b industry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Would cutting migration really solve the housing crisis?

This week on The Fin podcast, aviation reporter Ayesha de Kretser on the dramatic downfall of Bonza, the future of regional air travel in Australia and whether it’s possible for another airline to ever thrive in this market.
This podcast is sponsored by AICD
Further reading:

Better slot access at Sydney might have saved Bonza, says regulator

The ACCC warns that regional travellers risk being left behind by the entrenched duopoly of Qantas and Virgin Australia.

PE firm behind Bonza, Melbourne Victory calls in insolvency experts

The private equity firm called in advisers overnight to assist with “operational challenges”. It is a major shareholder in the A-League club and budget airline.

How 777 Partners bad marriage doomed Bonza from the start

Documents pitched to investors prove Bonza could never succeed with the fleet it was leasing – a condition of its relationship with 777 Partners. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inside the Bonza bust & what it means for airline competition

This week on The Fin podcast, wealth reporter Lucy Dean and wealth editor Joanna Mather explain what’s happening in the great wealth transfer and how it will shape the economy, politics and intergenerational rivalry.
This podcast is sponsored by AICD
Further reading:

Forget Boomers. Millennials, your next landlord could be a best mate

For decades, Millennials and Generation Z have blamed Baby Boomers for locking them out of the housing market. But what happens when wealthy Boomers start to give their kids cash?

Women overwhelming winners in $5trn Baby Boomer wealth transfer

Women will receive 65 per cent of the nearly $5 trillion due to pass from Baby Boomers and their parents to the next generation in the next decade, a new report finds.

Not just cruises: Boomers direct spending to kids and grandkids

Financial advisors report many over-65s are helping family members rather than splurging – though travel is a thing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when Australia’s Boomers hand $5 trillion to their heirs

This week on The Fin podcast, political editor Phillip Coorey talks about what the government is likely to announce in the federal budget, what that means for inflation and interest rates, and gives his assessment of how Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton are faring as we count down to the next election.
This podcast is sponsored by AICD
Further reading:

Labor election plans start blowing smoke

Labor is banking on at least one rate cut before calling an election. That scenario is no longer guaranteed.

Chalmers locks in business tax breaks to help Made in Australia

The budget will contain tax breaks for investors to turbocharge the government’s Future Made in Australia Act, Jim Chalmers has confirmed.

‘Vigilant’ RBA puts home loan borrowers on notice

Governor Michele Bullock has issued a fresh warning to mortgage holders, two years after the Reserve Bank of Australia began raising interest rates. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Budget 2024: rates watch, tax breaks & the NDIS ticking bomb

This week on The Fin podcast, Ben Potter and Jacob Greber talk about Peter Dutton’s atomic bet, the economics of nuclear energy and whether the power requirements of the AI revolution change the debate.

This podcast is sponsored by ANZ
Listen to 5-in-5 with ANZ on Spotify here
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Further reading:

Dutton’s atomic bet threatens Coalition chain reaction over climate

Rather than keep the heat on Labor’s handling of the cost-of-living pain as inflation stays high, the opposition leader’s nuclear venture risks becoming the story.

Booming AI demand threatens electricity supply

Regulators are scrambling to factor the explosive growth of data centres into demand projections as one network warns of a 250 per cent surge in power needs.

Why Dutton is going nuclear

Peter Dutton thinks he can sell nuclear power to the public. The energy industry remains unconvinced by the business case. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Xi Jinping's COVID gamble

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