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The rush to Electric Vehicle (EV) ‘adoption’ surged globally following the outbreak of the war in Iran and the subsequent spike in fuel prices. In Europe, new EV registrations rose by roughly 34 per cent year-on-year (YoY) across 17 major markets, while some automakers like Renault reported a 50 per cent jump in their EV order books. 

Here in Australia, new EV uptake jumped nearly 50 per cent in the first month of the conflict, nearly doubling YoY sales to account for 14.6 per cent of all new car sales.

That these buyers weren’t buying before the war began might say something about motivations: less about being environmentally friendly and more about saving the hip pocket. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Manufacturing, Market commentary.

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I joined Juliette Saly on Ausbiz to discuss the ASX debut of FDC Consolidated (ASX), outlining why I believe the construction and fit-out business presents a compelling investment opportunity. I highlighted its 36-year track record, strong insider ownership, large work in progress, repeat client base and attractive forecast yield, while noting that quality businesses can still attract investor demand despite a subdued Initial Public Offering (IPO) market. We also discussed Australia’s fragile consumer confidence, with high household debt, rising rents and ongoing cost-of-living pressures continuing to weigh on sentiment, even as confidence gradually recovers from its 53-year low.

Watch here: FDC’s ASX debut – a builder with bite  Continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Companies, Editor's Pick, Insightful Insights, Market commentary, Market Valuation, Small Caps, Stocks We Like, TV Appearances.

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Before I begin; I use the term ‘workers’ in this article. It’s not intended to be disparaging. It’s a reference to a label that the Labor Government gives their core constituency. It’s the voting base Labor frequently refers to and says they support.

The 2026 Federal budget may offer an insight into Labor’s logic:

‘Tax the asset to fund their so-called ‘worker’, so that worker can buy an asset.’

The problem?

They haven’t solved a generational divide; I believe they’ve just designed a wealth-recycling machine where the Government takes a service fee at every turn.

If we look a bit closer, we find a paradox. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Editor's Pick, Market commentary.

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I joined Jess Maguire on ABC Statewide Drive to break down what’s actually on the table ahead of the federal budget. With a large deficit, ongoing inflation and rising government spending, I said this is an important budget and a time when rumours can spread quickly. I pushed back on claims of an inheritance tax and a cash ban, noting there’s little political appetite for either, while highlighting that changes to superannuation for higher balances are already in place. We also discussed how an EV road user charge could be introduced over time as fuel excise declines. On housing, I said policy tweaks like negative gearing changes are unlikely to have much impact, with credit availability and migration remaining the key drivers. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Market commentary, Radio.

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If you’ve been following our blogs and Montgomery Minutes about noted short seller Michael Burry, you’ll know he’s been making headlines this year for shorting the artificial intelligence (AI) bubble. Late last week, he reported he has again increased those short bets.

If you haven’t been following our posts on the subject, Michael Burry is the former chief of the now-closed hedge fund manager Scion Asset Management and was immortalised by Michael Lewis in his 2010 book The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine, which reported on Burry’s large asymmetric bets against the 2008 U.S. housing bubble. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Editor's Pick, Insightful Insights, Market commentary, Market Valuation, Technology & Telecommunications.

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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) needs to follow California’s lead and get on this! 

I want to tell you about a product called Kalibrate Fuel Pricing. Kalibrate, the company that provides artificial intelligence (AI) driven fuel pricing and market analytics software, is owned by the private equity firm Hanover Bidco.

Kalibrate Fuel Pricing requests petrol station owners to provide sensitive, non-public data, including historical gas sale costs, volumes, forecasted costs, and margins. Using this private data alongside publicly available information, it offers pricing recommendations for petrol. Kalibrate describes this approach as “competitor-led fuel pricing decisions” and claims to provide “complete visibility on your competitors.”

That all sounds reasonable when thinking about an individual station using the service. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, Editor's Pick, Energy / Resources, Market commentary.

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In economics, the wealth of a nation is built and sustained through production, and that production requires three ingredients: Land, Labour, and Capital. These are the finite building blocks of prosperity. Land provides the raw materials, Labour provides the muscle and the mind to transform them, and Capital represents the tools.

The primary challenge for every society has always been the efficient allocation of, and between, these inherently scarce resources. If you run out of one, growth grinds to a halt. You need all three. That was, it seems, up until recently, when it was proposed a fourth ingredient exists, and today this emerging thesis is inspiring stock market bulls. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Global markets, Insightful Insights, Market commentary, Market Valuation, Technology & Telecommunications.

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For as long as I have been around, the local supermarket and grocery store were the bastions of “what you see is what you get.” You picked up a jar of Vegemite or a tin of baked beans, looked at the price sticker stuck on the lid or the paper tag on the shelf, and you knew exactly what you were going to pay when you arrived at the checkout. 

But if companies and their board members have their way, that certainty will soon evaporate. And it will be replaced with something far more fluid, algorithmic, and, quite frankly, offensive and invasive and designed to handicap you.

It is called Surveillance Pricing, and if the government allows it, it will be the icing on the cake of the rip-off society we now live in, where Aussies are constantly shafting other Aussies. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Market commentary.

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When it comes to IPOs, you generally don’t want to be a member of any club that will have you. But, Australian retail investors are being given access.

Whether it’s the timing, the size, or something more sinister, the SpaceX IPO is poised to be one of the more polarising stockmarket milestones in recent times.

This article was first published in The Australian on 09 June 2026.
Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, In the Press.

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I joined Jess Maguire on ABC Statewide Drive to discuss what rising oil prices and the conflict in the Middle East could mean for markets. We looked at historical data showing that past oil-price peaks have often been followed by weaker share markets, and also explored the growing excitement around SpaceX, including the opportunities and risks for investors considering investing in the company.

Tune in from 1:46:33 here: ABC Statewide Drive Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Energy / Resources, Global markets, Market commentary, Radio.

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