EDITORS' PICKS

Qantas – the Asian escape
Alan Kohler
The government's response to Qantas is outrageous, but there's a fair chance FWA will eventually make a ruling in favour of the airline. Then Qantas will face the real decider: China.

Time for radical bank reform
Alan Kohler
Underlying markets' frantic activity is the unbalanced risk and reward inherent in modern banking. This is why banks must return to their basic functions.

Foster's hidden treasure
Robert Gottliebsen
Deep within the Foster's takeover documents is a startling detail about the distributable surplus the company expects in 2012.

Beware the Basel 3 avalanche
Robert Gottliebsen
As Basel 3 threatens to produce a global banking tragedy, ANZ chief executive Mike Smith is preparing his bank to make the best of it by picking up Asian assets on the cheap.

The right way to conserve a bank
Stephen Bartholomeusz
The latest results from Australia's big four banks suggest conservative capitalisation and profits are not mutually exclusive, but a change to the terms of remuneration may be the best method to reduce a risk-taking culture.

Virtues of Qantas certainty
Stephen Bartholomeusz
The market believes Qantas has emerged from the weekend with better prospects. Investors are well aware of what might have been if Joyce hadn't taken action.

The split in Greece's united front
Karen Maley
As markets breathe a sigh of relief in the wake of Greece's cancelled referendum, there are growing signs that the leaders of Greece and Italy could very soon be on the outer.

MF Global's fatal European flaw
Karen Maley
Former Goldman chief Jon Corzine's dream to transform MF Global into a mini Goldman has gone up in flames, with the broker-dealer filing for bankruptcy after investing heavily in Spanish and Italian bonds.

To which victor the Qantas spoils?
Rob Burgess
Labor has had a win of sorts after Fair Work Australia paved the way for Qantas to return to the sky, but if a lasting solution is not found in three weeks Julia Gillard will have plenty to worry about.

Green and reds under the bed
Rob Burgess
The Coalition's battle to brand the Greens as the last hiding place of hard-left thought in Australia is firing up, but it could be more difficult than the Coalition imagines.

Housing bubbles aren't forever
Steve Keen
This week's anemic housing data confirms the effects of decelerating debt on property prices. So will it tempt the government to step in with measures to re-inflate Australia's housing bubble?

The RBA's housing game changer
Christopher Joye
The RBA's bold decision to cut rates is a handy boost for the Australian housing market, and will see activity rebound one quarter earlier than expected.

Going long on European deja vu
Oliver Marc Hartwich
By all measures, the proclaimed solution to the Greek debt problem announced last Thursday is a scam. The real question is: why did investors buy the rhetoric once again?

Cutting into RBA credibility
Adam Carr
The Reserve Bank's decision gives it little room to move if inflation spikes back up, which is likely given recent economic moves are confidence based, not structural.

CLIMATE SPECTATOR: The great NSW coal subsidy scandal
Giles Parkinson
The Tamberlin report reveals that NSW coal-fired generators could only survive – and its gentraders could only be sold – with a massive subsidy on the supply of coal.

TECHNOLOGY SPECTATOR: The long road to national broadband
Paul Budde
Slowly but surely, governments around the world are recognising the need to show leadership in the development of broadband infrastructure.