EDITORS' PICKS

Shanghai whac-a-mole
Alan Kohler
How often do you get to witness the creation of modern society from the ground up? In the world's biggest city, everything is done on a daunting scale – and the Communist Party has less control than you might think.

Sizing up a China wobble
Alan Kohler
Conditions are falling into place for bubbles in some parts of China's economy. But like everything else about the country, its economic kinks – and any impending blow-outs – have distinctive characteristics.

France passes the baton to China
Robert Gottliebsen
With a single phone call to secure renminbi for Europe, Nicolas Sarkozy has signified the shift of western power to China. But the deal comes with stringent conditions.

Apartment antics hurt Australia
Robert Gottliebsen
Without Chinese buyers, Sydney apartment prices could fall to levels that would make it uneconomic to build in inner suburbs. Meanwhile, the RBA's rate policy is pricing locals out of the market.

Buying time for a real eurozone breakthrough
Stephen Bartholomeusz
Europe's leaders have agreed on a response to the region's sovereign debt and allied banking crisis, but while the decision was significant in averting immediate disaster, it only marks the beginning of a long road to a very different eurozone.

Bitter fruits of Foster's negotiation
Stephen Bartholomeusz
In negotiations with SABMiller, Foster's used its only leverage to attract a higher offer – and it is that leverage which means a small shareholder backlash won't derail the bid.

Catch-22 for a troubled Greece
Karen Maley
Europe's leaders no doubt believe their deal is a major victory. Unfortunately, it won't be enough to free Greece from the risk of becoming a perpetual debt-creating machine.

Berlusconi's lost dolce vita
Karen Maley
As Silvio Berlusconi's grip on power fades, another Italian – Mario Draghi – is rising to power as head of the ECB. Together, these events are muddying the waters in Europe.

Labor finds strange MRRT bedfellows
Rob Burgess
As the Gillard government's crossbench support grows increasingly wary of the MRRT, the legislation has managed to find some new friends from surprising quarters.

A tug-o-war between carbon and the NBN
Rob Burgess
Two defining issues of the Gillard government are heading in different directions in regard to their popularity and the Coalition's plans to destroy them.

SCOREBOARD: CPI caprice
Adam Carr
The latest inflation figures will embolden those arguing for a rate cut, but it still isn't clear whether easing is needed.

CLIMATE SPECTATOR: Is carbon law on Abbott's side?
Giles Parkinson
Tony Abbott's climate pledge might sound reckless, but a Coalition government may be legally able to repeal the carbon tax without paying compensation to the holders of carbon units

Are property renovators wasting their time?
Christopher Joye
Australians spend a great deal of money altering and renovating their homes, but how much value does this add to the residential property sector?.

Is Australia shy of the Asia boom?
Oliver Marc Hartwich
Australia's locality and relatively strong economy leaves us perfectly positioned to capitalise on the rise of the East. So why are we hell-bent on repeating many of Europe's mistakes?

The trouble with female board quotas
Leon Gettler
By focussing on the low number of female board members, Australian businesses are not only missing the real problem with women in senior management – they're exacerbating it.

TECHNOLOGY SPECTATOR: CBA rings in the mobile register
Charis Palmer
With its new mobile payments system, the Commonwealth Bank has delivered a solid response to the growing threat of Google and PayPal, leaving its rivals to play catch-up.