Money

Qantas auction sparks multi-million point spending ‘frenzy’

Published

4 years ago

August 9, 2021

Anthony Lucas

Qantas wins in another High Court battle

Qantas’ first-ever points auction has blown expectations out of the sky

Loyalty members have splashed up to 12.3 million Qantas points in a bid to nab some exclusive items.

Among the unique launch offerings, were a rare set of Qantas lie-flat business Skybeds and a lavish Dash-8 private charter flight for up to 30 mates.

Two Qantas A380 sky beds used for crew training since 2008 have “sold” for two million frequent flyer points and that equates to around $40,000.

With little flying going on, Qantas came up with the concept of a “points auction” to engage frequent flyers who have continued to amass points from activities like credit card use and grocery shopping.

Five items or experiences have gone up for auction since Monday, with the sky beds attracting the second-highest bid to date.

Other items to go under the hammer in the daylong auctions included a Boeing 787 simulator experience with a Qantas captain which went for 1.2 million points.

A soccer clinic for 20 children with Socceroos coach Graham Arnold attracted a winning bid of 501,000 points and a holiday for four to Queenstown flying in business class “sold” for 3.76 million points.

Money

Tesla brand value plummets amid Elon Musk’s political focus

Tesla’s brand value plummeted to $27.61 billion in 2025 amid Musk’s political shift, sparking investor concern.

Published

1 day ago

January 28, 2026

Harvey Vargas

Tesla’s brand value plummeted to $27.61 billion in 2025 amid Musk’s political shift, sparking investor concern.

Tesla’s brand value plummeted by $15.4 billion in 2025, falling to $27.61 billion from $66.2 billion in early 2023. Analysts say Elon Musk’s political focus and a slowdown in new models have distracted the company’s core business.

In the U.S., Tesla’s recommendation score sank to just 4 out of 10, down from 8.2 in 2023. Despite this, loyalty among existing owners remains high at 92 per cent, showing a strong but shrinking fan base.

#TeslaNews #ElonMusk #BrandValue

Money

S&P 500 and Nasdaq rally ahead of Fed meeting and earnings

S&P 500 and Nasdaq rise for fourth session as investors await earnings and Fed meeting, marking longest gain since December.

Published

2 days ago

January 27, 2026

Harvey Vargas

S&P 500 and Nasdaq rise for fourth session as investors await earnings and Fed meeting, marking longest gain since December.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have climbed for the fourth consecutive session as investors brace for upcoming earnings reports and a Federal Reserve meeting.

Both indexes reached their highest levels in over a week, marking the longest series of gains since December.

#StockMarket #SP500 #Nasdaq #TechStocks

Money

U.S. and China approve TikTok sale to American investors

US and China approve TikTok’s sale to Oracle and Silver Lake amid regulatory scrutiny, with ByteDance retaining 20%.

Published

6 days ago

January 23, 2026

Harvey Vargas

US and China approve TikTok’s sale to Oracle and Silver Lake amid regulatory scrutiny, with ByteDance retaining 20%.

The United States and China have officially approved a deal for TikTok’s US operations to be sold to American investors, led by Oracle and Silver Lake.

This marks a major shift in the social media landscape as the platform navigates increasing regulatory scrutiny.

Under the new agreement, ByteDance will retain just under 20% of TikTok US, while Oracle and Silver Lake will each take 15% stakes. Other investors will also participate, forming a structure designed to satisfy both commercial and regulatory demands.

The new US-based entity will have a majority American board tasked with overseeing data protection and content moderation. Despite these safeguards, concerns remain about ByteDance’s influence and whether the deal fully complies with recent legislation.

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#TikTokSale #USChinaDeal #Oracle #SilverLake #ByteDance #TechNews #SocialMedia #DataProtection