Past Programs
Economics - 2008
2008 | 2007 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003
Pulling your food-chain Read Transcript
25/04/2008
You've heard it before: Australia's two, large retailers have a stranglehold on groceries, primary producers are forced to sell for less and the mark-up between the farm gate and the supermarket shelf is massive. In fact, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission - which has been inquiring into the cost of groceries since April - has been hearing such complaints directed against Australia's retailing quasi-duopoly, Coles and Woolworths. But if farmers want a better return on their agricultural investment, then they may be barking up the wrong tree. It all has to do with the mysterious art of supply chain management.
Tricky short sellers Read Transcript
29/02/2008
Here's the plan: sell a truckload of shares that aren't yours, then buy them back once their price has plunged. Too bizarre to be true? Welcome to the world of share lending and short-selling, two of the trickiest manoeuvres in the ever expanding palette of subterfuge available to hedge funds. And guess what? You're an accomplice. Australian superannuation funds routinely hand over your shares to allow borrowers to have their wicked way with them - even when it pushes down the shares' value. Surely it's time for the Australian Securities Exchange to get physical with these guys... Or should we just let the market take care of itself?
