EDITORS' PICKS

Swan's sins of ambition
Alan Kohler
Wayne Swan's budget projection of 1 per cent annual growth in spending is ambitious, it's true, but at least that's where his ambition is directed, not towards getting the top job.

An Olympic victory for BHP
Robert Gottliebsen
The enormous scale of BHP's Olympic Dam deposit has been revealed in the miner's environmental statement. With the price of uranium set to soar it's boom times for all involved.

Australia's Dutch Disease diagnosis
Robert Gottliebsen
The mining boom has masked the effect of declining bank lending to SMEs. This decline is set to decimate employment in capital cities and crush the property market.

Glencore's real IPO strategy
Stephen Bartholomeusz
Rather than a grab for cash, the master plan behind the float of Glencore is to accelerate the company's transformation from a big commodities trader into a group that also owns key mining assets around the world.

A perverse NBN price model effect
Stephen Bartholomeusz
With the pricing model for the NBN holding an expensive sting for ordinary consumers, the government has jeopardised the future commercial viability of the network and practically ensured a spending blow-out.

Heading for a post-QE collapse?
Karen Maley
If commodity and share prices can't be justified by real demand, it's possible the US economy could end up in worse shape than if QE2 had never been implemented.

Why Europe fears a China-led IMF
Karen Maley
Dominique Strauss-Kahn's arrest has sparked worries emerging nations may try to have a candidate appointed as IMF head. This could prove a problem for future eurozone bailouts.

Gillard's unhedged liability
Rob Burgess
The argument that there's not much point worrying about a theoretical budget deficit is at odds with basic investment logic, and leaves us uninsured against an eventual softening in the commodities boom.

Pitfalls for Prime Minister Abbott
Rob Burgess
At this point, the polls are showing Tony Abbott is a sure bet for Prime Minister. But how he would live up to the promises of the recent phase of populist politics once in power is hard to imagine.

TECHNOLOGY SPECTATOR: Hacking competition gets grubby
Charis Palmer
The arrest of Fairfax's deputy technology editor has highlighted the absence of tech understanding within the police force and also shone a spotlight on the world of competitive hacking.

Stagflation nation - the home of hopeless housing
Unconventional Economist
Rather than fall suddenly, Australian property prices could stagnate for an extended period, or slowly deflate over time. The big question is, how will investors react to the prospect of dismal market returns?

CLIMATE SPECTATOR: Time to put the clown hats away
Giles Parkinson
It's decision-making time in the carbon debate. Business and investors crave certainty – and a price floor may be one answer. The Coalition, meanwhile, continues to pull funny faces.

Middle Australia is suffering
Mark Bouris
Rising interest rates and inflation, together with declines in house prices and poor sharemarket returns, are putting many so-called wealthy middle Australians on the bread line. Something needs to be done.

Flat-top house prices won't collapse
Christopher Joye
While property prices are static and interest rates look set to rise, a major property market collapse is not on the horizon. The underlying fundamentals are still strong.