Good morning! A lot happened overnight in Australian politics and around the world. Here is the latest news from our team, who work tirelessly around the clock.

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Today's reading time is 7 minutes. - Miko Santos

WEATHER

THIS MORNING HEADLINES:

• Netanyahu Rejects Ceasefire Proposal: Israel-Lebanon Tensions Escalate. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior leaders refused the 21-day truce that was proposed by Western and Arab leaders in the border between Israel and Lebanon. As a result of that, the country is continuing its military strikes on the Hezbollah strongholds despite international calls to scale down the operations.

• EnergyAustralia Fined $14 Million for Misleading Electricity Price Statements. The ruling ordered EnergyAustralia to pay $14 million in penalties for misleading consumers about electricity prices and not providing information that the company is supposed to provide. The effort affected more than half a million of its customers at a time when the cost of energy is going up.

  
  

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POLITICS
PM Albanese Firm on Negative Gearing: 'No Plans to Change' Despite Housing Crisis

The heated debate sparked by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s stance on negative gearing is raising questions about Australia’s housing market and future tax policies. In a recent interview, Albanese faced tough questions about potential changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax credits, leaving investors and landlords on the edge of skepticism

The Key points:

• Albanese stated the government has "no plans" to change negative gearing

• The PM emphasized focus on housing supply rather than tax policy changes

• Critics question the reliability of Albanese's statements, citing past policy reversals

• The debate highlights ongoing concerns about housing affordability in Australia

Simply put, negative gearing allows property investors to exclude losses on their investments from their taxable income. The Albanese government is currently struggling to balance affordable housing concerns with preserving investor confidence. Albanese argues that changing negative gearing will not solve supply issues, which he believes are the root cause of the housing crisis.

Big picture: The debate on negative gearing is part of a wider national debate on housing affordability, tax reform, and economic management. With inflation and cost-of-living pressures in Australia at their current state, policy choices here could have far-reaching impacts on the nation's economic landscape and social fabric.

TOUR DE INTERNATIONAL

🇺🇳 Global Powers Call for 21-Day Ceasefire Between Lebanon and Israel. A group of influential countries, including Australia, issued a joint statement calling for an immediate 21-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel to allow for diplomatic talks and avert a regional crisis

🇺🇸 Hurricane Helene Intensifies: Category 4 Landfall Imminent on Gulf Coast. Hurricane Helene is a Category 5 potentially catastrophic hurricane, with widespread impacts, that is rapidly strengthening as it churns its way toward the Gulf Coast, amid urgent calls for the immediate evacuation of cities most at risk and fears of record flooding and storm surge.

🇸🇩 Sudan Army Launches Major Offensive in Khartoum as UN General Assembly Convenes. The Sudanese army launched a full-scale military operation in the capital city of Khartoum, pounding its rival fellow force, the Rapid Support Forces, with artillery and airstrikes in a conflict that stretched for 17 months and has further strained the humanitarian situation in the country.

ECONOMY
ABS Report: Cooling Job Market and Rising Property Values Reshape Australian Economy

Australia's economic outlook is a real tale of contrasts, cooled job vacancies pitted against the continued rise in household wealth. New data from the ABS shows job vacancies slipped 5.2 per cent to 330,000 in August 2024-the ninth quarter in a row that job vacancies have fallen, while household wealth rose for a seventh consecutive quarter, by 1.5 per cent, or $250 billion, to $16.5 trillion in June 2024.

The Key points:

• Australian job vacancies fell 5.2 per cent to 330,000 in August 2024 but are still up 45.1 per cent on pre-pandemic levels as the series fell for a ninth consecutive quarter

• Household wealth gained for a seventh consecutive quarter, up 1.5 per cent or $250 billion to $16.5 trillion in June 2024

• The key drivers of household wealth growth were residential land and dwellings despite high interest rates.

There are two strong trends at work currently in the economic environment of Australia. Firstly, the number of job vacancies in Australia has dropped for the twenty-second consecutive month-to-month period, standing at 330,000 in August 2024.

This extends the downward trend, although the job vacancies remain way higher than those before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, household wealth has been on the rise and reached a total of $16.5 trillion in June 2024. Growth is spearheaded by housing and superannuation funds, which both went up in price. This only goes to show that as the job market starts to cool down, the wealth of households keeps on growing.

Big Picture: These might be the trends that push the big picture to reshape the economic landscape in Australia. This cooling in the labor market may provide a better balance of labor supply and demand, which could temper wage pressures and provide opportunities for skill development and assist in inflation control. It is likely, though, to signal a more general economic slowdown.

The continuing gain in household wealth, especially through property, reflected the still greater importance of the housing market to the Australian economy. While positive on many counts for home owners, this wealth rise perhaps is one factor that gives a gap to disposable family income and thus hits the affordability of housing.

The maturation of the Term Funding Facility and its implications for bank funding also mark another transition from the pandemic-era support to economic activity and may result in changes to credit, investment, and the broader economic activity.

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RETAILS
Government Ramps Up Supermarket Competition Measures to Tackle Cost of Living

The government is boosting efforts to address supermarket competition and cost of living pressures through measures such as food price controls, mandatory food and feed regulations and ACCC reviews

The Key points:

• CHOICE released its second Grocery Price Monitoring Report

• ALDI is the cheapest supermarket, currently second only to Coles Woolworths.

• The proposed food and grocery regulations have been promulgated

• The ACCC is entering deeper into supermarket competition

The Labor-led Australian Government is taking important steps such as funding for CHOICE, the introduction of mandatory food and snacks legislation to address supermarket competition and the rising cost of living role Supported CHOICE, a consumer group, to conduct regular price comparisons across all major supermarket chains , promoting increased competition and transparency.

The latest report shows ALDI is the cheaper option, with Coles now holding off Woolworths for second place when specials are added. In addition, to ensure that supermarkets and suppliers behave properly, the government has introduced mandatory codes of conduct for food and groceries, with hefty fines non-compliance supports.

Big picture: The focus on supermarket competition is part of a broader government program aimed at addressing increased market specialization and competition in the Australian economy as a whole.

This includes changing the rules of merger about, exchange non-competition information and cooperate with countries on national competition policy. The Government believes that increased competition will lead to a productive, dynamic and equitable economy, which can help reduce inflation and raise the standard of living for Australians.

WAIT, THAT’S NOT ALL!

• Strengthening Aussie-China Trade Relations: Treasurer's Crucial Beijing Meetings. Australia's treasurer is in Beijing to meet Chinese officials and co-chair the Australia-China Strategic Economic Dialogue in a bid to stabilize and better relations between the two economies after years of tension.

• Global Coalition Challenges Afghanistan's Treatment of Women Under International Law. Several nations, such as Australia, are taking criminal movement towards Afghanistan to project the Taliban's systematic oppression of ladies and women, aiming to protect their fundamental rights and freedoms.

• Dutton Demands University of Sydney Leadership Resign Over Protest Handling. Opposition leader Peter Dutton called for the resignation of the top leadership of the University of Sydney over its handling of the Gaza protest camps, which he said spawned antisemitic incidents on campus. The situation also sparked debate about free speech and safety at academic settings.

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