No-one really knows why
the bond market is behaving as it is, says Alan Kohler in The Smage
– the overnight cash
rate is 5.5%; the 10-year bond yield is 5.195%, which
means investors are prepared to give the Australian Government
money for 10 years at a lower interest rate than they can get for a
series of one-day loans. But one thing is for sure:
this remains the big issue for investors.

British QC Jonathan Sumption met a sceptical reception from
Federal Court judge Ron Sackville yesterday when he fleshed out the
Seven Network’s case that the winning bid for AFL broadcasting
rights in 2000 was so uneconomic that it was illegally
predatory, reports The SMH.

Online auctioneer eBay’s decision to pay up to
$US4.1 billion ($5.3 billion) for internet telephone company Skype has
industry analysts hailing a return to the dotcom era, reports The Australian. Skype has an estimated 54 million users worldwide –
but little more than formidable income projections to justify its lofty
price tag.

And The Fin Review reports that the federal government is set to
give small business stronger legal powers to challenge anti-competitive
behaviour such as predatory pricing by their big business rivals.

On Wall Street, US stocks closed sharply lower overnight, after investors overlooked positive inflation and trade data to debate
the economic impact of Hurricane Katrina. The Dow Jones

closed down 85.50 points at 10,597 – MarketWatch has a full report here.