Insights

The proposed merger between contract labour business Skilled and Programmed has strong business logic, but Skilled's initial response suggests it isn't too happy about the terms of the proposal.

Fears of inflation as a result of Chinese monetary policy have rekindled investors' interest in gold.

Amid thin, holiday-affected trade, the Dow Jones finished higher for a seventh day, while oil prices fell on the back of US Energy Department data.

The push for a weaker dollar has had little impact on industries such as tourism, education and manufacturing, yet it has completely hijacked monetary policy.

Economists forecast another year of doom and gloom ahead, as income growth weakens and our terms of trade declines. But there could be a few bright spots.

Beijing has made great strides in tackling an impending environmental crisis, but there have also been big stumbling blocks to progress.

The Reserve Bank released 14 research discussion papers. Here's a selection of its most thought-provoking insights for the economy.

As the line between personal information and general browsing blurs it's getting easier for hackers to piece together our digital identities.

OPEC's decision to maintain production amid sinking oil prices is similar to the actions taken by Rio and BHP to drive out high-cost production in iron ore.

Europe's New Year's resolutions should be to implement policies to reduce conflicts in neighbouring countries, and to increase growth and jobs.

Australia's commodity-sensitive market has been riding a rollercoaster of plunging oil prices and US interest rate chatter.

Since coming to power, Bruce Billson has focused on the key issues challenging small business. But there's more conflict to come in 2015.

Financial and mining stocks are likely to underperform given regulatory uncertainty and tumbling commodity prices, but some sectors will be ripe for returns.

Buoyed by the strong performance of blue-chip stocks, US markets secured new historic records, while world oil prices also enjoyed a lift.

​Mobile ransomware, work-at-home fraud and horrid videos all set to claim new victims in 2015.

The data suggests Australian consumers are a fragile bunch. Look closer and you'll see a different story emerge.