1h agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 12:24amMarket snapshot<\/p>\n
Prices current around 10:25am AEST<\/p>\n
Live updates on the major ASX indices:<\/b><\/p>\n
5m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 2:08am<\/p>\n
Inflation looks stable at its lowest level in three-and-a-half years<\/p>\n
While there’s a lot of caution about the incomplete monthly Consumer Price Index Indicator<\/b> published by the ABS<\/b>, there is one number that strongly suggests the inflation dragon has been well and truly slayed.<\/p>\n
The annual trimmed mean, a measure of underlying inflation, was down to 2.4 per cent in May<\/b>, from 2.8 per cent in April, which the ABS said was its lowest rate since November 2021.<\/p>\n
That’s also now below\u00a0the middle of the Reserve Bank’s 2-3 per cent target.<\/p>\n
My colleague Steph Chalmers<\/b> has all the details in her article about the latest Bureau of Statistics release.<\/p>\n
14m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:59am<\/p>\n
Increasing pressure on RBA to cut rates in July<\/p>\n
\nSurely with those CPI numbers the RBA will be hammered if they don\u2019t drop rates in July .<\/p>\n
– Phillip<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Hi Phillip.<\/p>\n
I suspect you’re right.<\/p>\n
Both market economists and the RBA are cautious about the monthly CPI indicator, which is still quite new.<\/p>\n
However, even though the RBA would probably prefer to wait for the full quarterly CPI numbers, these inflation figures are so low as to start being concerning that the bank might undershoot its inflation target.<\/p>\n
That is, it risks holding interest rates too high for too long, so that the economy is performing worse than it needs to be.<\/p>\n
That then risks the central bank having kept more Australians out of work than necessary to achieve its inflation target \u2014 something it has been slammed for by many prominent economists for doing in the pre-pandemic period.<\/p>\n
I wouldn’t be surprised to see one or two other high-profile economists shift their rate cut forecasts forward from August to July, joining NAB’s Sally Auld who has kept that as her base case.<\/p>\n
19m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:54am<\/p>\n
Fuel price cycles<\/p>\n
\nWhy is my local diesel already $2.08 if it\u2019s dropped. <\/p>\n
– Jess TweedHeads<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Hi Jess.<\/p>\n
Always a good question.<\/p>\n
For one thing, the changes in oil price should take several weeks to affect the wholesale, and then retail, fuel prices in Australia.<\/p>\n
That’s because the oil being purchased by the refineries takes time to get there, time to be refined, and then more time to be shipped to Australia.<\/p>\n
So, in theory, we shouldn’t really even be seeing the rise in prices from the beginning of the “12-Day War” yet, let alone the falls back to pre-war levels we’ve seen over the past two days.<\/p>\n
That said, when people are reading headlines about surging oil prices, it does seem like an opportune time for fuel retailers to jack up their prices.<\/p>\n
That’s exactly what Treasurer Jim Chalmers<\/b> yesterday warned them against doing.<\/p>\n
He’s asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission<\/b> to keep an eagle eye on retail petrol and diesel prices.<\/p>\n
Will it make much difference??? Your guess is probably as good as mine.<\/p>\n
If you want a bit more background on where our fuel comes from and the major role the Middle East plays in our supply, read this explainer by my colleague Hanan Dervisevic<\/b>.<\/p>\n
29m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:44am<\/p>\n
When was the last time you checked your superannuation?<\/p>\n
If you’re like me, and probably most people who are still a fair way off retirement age, then the answer is not lately.<\/p>\n
But, as Amy Sheehan reports for ABC Lifestyle, financial experts say it pays to be a bit more observant.<\/p>\n
34m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:39am<\/p>\n
Financial markets price 88 per cent chance of July rate cut<\/p>\n
After surprisingly weak inflation numbers, especially the trimmed mean, which is now below the middle of the RBA’s target band, traders have upped their bets on a July interest rate cut.<\/p>\n
Market pricing implies about an 88% chance of the Reserve Bank cutting rates next month.<\/b><\/p>\n
However, only one of the four major banks (NAB) has a rate cut in July as their baseline forecast.<\/p>\n
The others, like most market economists, are tipping the next rate cut to happen in August.<\/p>\n
39m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:34amInflation tumbles in monthly reading<\/p>\n
Inflation eased further last month, with consumer prices rising 2.1 per cent over the year to May<\/b>, down from 2.4 per cent the previous month.<\/p>\n
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics<\/b>, the monthly Consumer Price Index was at its lowest level since October 2024.<\/p>\n
The annual trimmed mean<\/b>, a measure of underlying inflation, was down to 2.4 per cent in May<\/b>, from 2.8 per cent in April, which the ABS said was its lowest rate since November 2021<\/b>.<\/p>\n
54m agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 1:19am<\/p>\n
‘Washington’s confidence men’ vindicated by Israel-Iran ceasefire<\/p>\n
An interesting note from RBC Capital Markets head of global commodity strategy, Helima Croft<\/b>:<\/p>\n
\n“The fact that President Trump was able to execute major strikes on three key nuclear facilities and contain Iran to a symbolic retaliation seemingly vindicates Washington’s confidence men, who insisted that Tehran was too weak to mount a significant challenge to American interests in the region,” she argues.<\/p>\n
“That said, we think it is important that President Trump essentially built the Iranians a Sun Tzu ‘golden bridge’ by foregoing a regime change agenda and subsequently signaling an end to maximum pressure sanctions on oil exports to China.<\/p>\n
“We will now be watching whether the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] seeks to supplant the clerics in the face of this public display of weakness<\/b> and pushes for a clandestine rebuild of the nuclear program.<\/p>\n
“With conflicting damage assessments and some scientists suggesting that Iran still has significant stockpiles of highly enriched uranium that could be weaponized in under a year, the nuclear negotiations may still prove challenging and lead to further Israeli and\/or US action in the event that Iran does not agree to forego future enrichment.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
So it sounds like Croft’s expectation is for relative calm in the short-term, but she doesn’t see a long-term fix to the issue of Iran’s nuclear ambitions.<\/p>\n
1h agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 12:53am<\/p>\n
Antoinette Lattouf awarded $70,000 as ABC found to have breached Fair Work Act<\/p>\n
The federal court has awarded Antoinette Lattouf $70,000 compensation<\/b> for the early termination of her short-term employment with the ABC.<\/p>\n
The case was brought on after the journalist was taken off air three days into a five-day casual stint as an ABC Radio Sydney<\/b> presenter in December 2023.<\/p>\n
You can read more about Justice Rangiah’s decision<\/b> in this article from our NSW news team.<\/p>\n
1h agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 12:46am<\/p>\n
The Aldi ColesWorth price gap appears to be closing. Why?<\/p>\n
That was the question put to Choice<\/b> by my colleague Emilia Terzon<\/b>, who is covering finance for ABC News Channel today.<\/p>\n
Last year, the gap appeared to be as much as 25%, now it’s down in the mid-single digits.<\/p>\n
So why?<\/p>\n
\n“While CHOICE\u2019s methodology hasn\u2019t changed, our base basket of items in Year 2 is different to our base basket of items in Year 1<\/b>,” explains a Choice spokesperson.<\/p>\n
“Our new emphasis on fresh foods \u2014 something we\u2019ve been asked to focus on by our audience \u2014 is a big reason why we\u2019ve seen the percentage differences between our basket totals change, as fresh and seasonal items tend to be more competitively priced.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
So there you have it, it’s not necessarily that price gaps have closed across the board, but when you’re only studying 14 different food and grocery items, changing which ones you look at can make a massive difference to the results.<\/p>\n
Given that the ABS now collects data directly from most of the major retailers, I wonder why the federal government didn’t fund it to crunch the numbers on overall supermarket pricing across the broad range of goods captured in the Consumer Price Index<\/b> (the monthly read of which is out in about 45 minutes)?<\/p>\n
1h agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 12:20amASX edges higher as commodity producers weigh on the market<\/p>\n
There’s only small gains on the ASX in early trade, as local investors declined to follow Wall Street’s gains well above 1% overnight.<\/p>\n
While “risk-on” sectors like consumer cyclicals and financials gained, the mining and energy sectors were both in the red as commodity prices generally eased.<\/p>\n
The Brent crude\u00a0oil price<\/b> in particular has plunged from more than $US80 a barrel at the start of the week to $US67.86 around 10:15am AEST<\/b>.<\/p>\n
That has seen the energy sector<\/b> lose around half a per cent overall, with Woodside<\/b> down more than 1%.<\/p>\n
Gold miners<\/b> have taken a bit of a hit too, as the easing in Middle East tensions has seen many investors reduce their safe-haven asset allocations.<\/p>\n
Overall, in the first 20 minutes of trade, the ASX 200 index was up just 0.1% to 8,566 points<\/b>.<\/p>\n
The Australian dollar<\/b> has been a beneficiary of the risk-on sentiment, trading at 64.93 US cents<\/b>.<\/p>\n
2h agoWed 25 Jun 2025 at 12:09am<\/p>\n
DroneShield announces major contract as conflicts increase demand<\/p>\n
The rising level of conflict in the Middle East and ongoing Russian war on Ukraine have generated at least one Australian beneficiary.<\/p>\n
ASX-listed and Sydney-based DroneShield<\/b> is a specialist in drone detection and counter-measures.<\/p>\n
It has today announced the biggest single order in its history, which is expected to generate more revenue than it made all of last year.<\/p>\n
\n“A package of three standalone follow-on contracts for $61.6 million<\/b> from its privately owned in-country European reseller that is contractually required to distribute the products to a European military customer<\/b>,” the company told investors about the order in an ASX release<\/a>.<\/p>\n
“The contracts are for handheld detection and counterdrone systems and associated accessories. DroneShield expects to deliver all equipment throughout Q3 2025, with cash payment expected in Q3 and Q4 2025<\/b>.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
It says the order is with an unnamed counterparty\/customer who it would not expect to have a material impact on the value of the company.<\/p>\n
The company also released an investor presentation today on the ASX<\/a>, talking up its sales pipeline and ongoing research and development activities.<\/p>\n
\n“In succession to the $32.3 million repeat order announced on 14 April 2025 for another customer, DroneShield products are now being purchased in material quantities,” said CEO Oleg Vornik in a statement.<\/p>\n
“The scale and frequency or orders has been increasing as leading military customers are moving from testing hardware to broader rollouts.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
2h agoTue 24 Jun 2025 at 11:35pmASIC considering its regulatory response to HESTA prolonged outage<\/p>\n
Despite normal services resuming three weeks ago, dozens of HESTA<\/b> superannuation members have contacted ABC News, distressed and frustrated they are still unable to access their own super funds.<\/p>\n
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