BREAKING NEWS Huge $400 payout for Aussies - what you need to know
In a move to help boost local manufacturers, the Allan Government announced the $400 cashback scheme, which will be available from July 1.
The $400 payout would be on top of the pre-existing rebate, worth up to $1,000, for households which upgrade or replace old hot water systems with solar systems.
The government claimed the initiative would help shield Australian manufacturers from cheap imports and help Victorians by lowering their power bills.
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Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Shares get a lift in Asia as lower US rates are baked in
SYDNEY, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Share markets found some much needed support in Asia on Monday as the heightened prospect of lower borrowing costs helped soothe concerns about the U.S. economy, though the long-term credibility of U.S. policy remained in doubt. A buy-the-dip mentality led to a bounce in Wall Street and European stock futures, and allowed the dollar to stabilise after Friday's U.S. payrolls-induced retreat. Treasuries ran into some profit-taking after their huge gains, but fund futures still imply an 85% chance the Federal Reserve will cut rates in September and ease by 100 basis points or more by this time next year. The prospect of a shift in rates was the only silver lining to a dire payrolls report in which downward revisions left the three-month average of jobs growth at 35,000 from 231,000 at the start of the year. "The report brings payroll growth closer in line with big data indicators of job gains and the broader growth dataset, both of which have slowed significantly in recent months," said analysts at Goldman Sachs. "Taken together, the economic data confirm our view that the U.S. economy is growing at a below-potential pace." Neither did the reaction of President Donald Trump instil confidence, as the firing of the head of Labor Statistics threatened the credibility of U.S. economic data. Likewise, news that Trump would get to fill a governorship position at the Federal Reserve early added to worries about the politicisation of interest rate policy. Analysts assume the appointee will be loyal to Trump alone, though the president did grudgingly concede that Fed Chair Jerome Powell would probably see out his term. "It opens the prospect of broader support on the Fed Board for lower rates sooner rather than later," said Ray Attrill, head of FX research at NAB. "Fed credibility, and the veracity of the statistics on which they base their policy decisions, are both now under the spotlight." Markets have essentially already eased for the Fed, with two-year Treasury yields down almost 25 basis points on Friday in the biggest one-day drop since August last year. The drop in global yields seemed to help equities, with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures both bouncing 0.4%. EUROSTOXX 50 futures gained 0.6%, while FTSE futures rose 0.5% and DAX futures 0.4%. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS), opens new tab firmed 0.7%, aided by a 1.1% rally in South Korean (.KS11), opens new tab stocks. Japan's Nikkei (.N22%), opens new tab fell 1.4%, in part weighed by Friday's rebound in the yen, while Chinese blue chips were flat. Wall Street has taken comfort in an upbeat results season. About two-thirds of S&P 500 companies have reported, and 63% have beaten forecasts. Earnings growth is estimated at 9.8%, up from 5.8% at the start of July. Companies reporting this week include Disney (DIS.N), opens new tab, McDonald's (MCD.N), opens new tab, Caterpillar (CAT.N), opens new tab and some of the large pharmaceutical groups. The dismal U.S. jobs data did put a dent in the dollar's crown of exceptionalism, snuffing out what had been a promising rally for the currency. The dollar was a shade firmer at 147.79 yen , having shed an eye-watering 2.3% on Friday, while the euro held at $1.1574 after bouncing 1.5% on Friday. The dollar index was pinned at 98.801 , having tumbled from last week's top of 100.250. Sterling was restrained at $1.3281 as markets are 87% priced for the Bank of England to cut rates by a quarter point at a meeting on Thursday. The BoE board is expected to remain split on easing, while markets still favour two further cuts by the middle of next year. In commodity markets, gold was little changed at $3,357 an ounce , having climbed more than 2% on Friday. Oil prices extended their latest slide as OPEC+ agreed to another large rise in output for September, which completely reverses last year's cuts of 2.2 million barrels per day. Brent futures dropped 0.2% to $69.52 a barrel, while U.S. crude futures fell 0.1% to $67.24 per barrel.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Cafe sparks outrage over insane price for a timeless favourite: 'Call the police'
An outraged customer has slammed a popular cafe chain for charging him $20.90 for a 'sad'-looking toastie. The man had visited a Coffee Club in Adelaide last week and ordered a Reuben toastie. The menu said it contained 'sliced pastrami, tangy sauerkraut, sliced pickled gherkins, whole egg mayo and a blend of melted mozzarella and cheddar'. However, the disappointed customer's photo showed a much less impressive sandwich. For almost $21, he received a stingy amount of pastrami and cheese, and just a 'spoon of sauerkraut and some mayo'. To top it off, the bread appeared to be hardly toasted. 'My wife and I rarely go out as we are striving to achieve some long-term goals but thought I'd share a bit of our outing this morning in pictures,' the man wrote on Reddit. He also shared a photo of his wife's ham, cheese and tomato toastie, which cost a whopping $15.90, and looked just as unappealing. 'What a time to be alive!' the customer joked. Social media users criticised the meal, with one describing it as 'the saddest-looking toastie I've ever seen'. 'Call the police, you got robbed,' one wrote. Another said: '$15 for a cheese toastie? Hold my thongs, I'm opening a café.' Other commenters described the toasties as 'bloody disgraceful', 'pathetic' and a 'huge rip-off'. Others urged the dissatisfied customer to consider local cafés over chains. 'You rarely go out, and you picked Coffee Club? Ah mate, you really need to be choosier,' one said. 'Chains and franchises (generally) are designed to be consistent and are traps for the masses,' another added. 'They're essentially money extractors, minimising their costs and maximising their profit.' A Coffee Club spokesman told Daily Mail the company was 'disappointed to hear of the experience'. 'It's not reflective of our standards or the service we expect our stores to provide to our valued customers,' he said.
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Global consortium led by Australia's BlueScope weighs takeover of embattled Whyalla steelworks
Australia's largest steelmaker, BlueScope, is part of an international consortium considering a takeover of the embattled Whyalla steelworks, which was stripped from the control of British industrialist Sanjeev Gupta earlier this year. A consortium consisting of the Australian steelmaker, Japan's Nippon Steel, Indian company JSW Steel and South Korean manufacturer POSCO, has submitted a non-binding expression of interest in the South Australian steelworks, BlueScope told shareholders on Monday. 'Any decision to make an offer to acquire and develop expanded operations at Whyalla would be subject to due diligence and the consortium members' return on investment hurdles,' BlueScope said in a statement. Sign up: AU Breaking News email 'The consortium has identified Whyalla as a prospective location for future production of lower emissions iron in Australia for both domestic and export markets, with the potential to play an important role in the decarbonisation of the global steelmaking industry.' POSCO led a 2017 bid to take over Whyalla, but was outbid by Gupta. BlueScope, which operates the Port Kembla steelworks south of Sydney, said there was no obligation to turn the consortium's expression of interest into a formal bid. Whyalla is one of only two major integrated steel projects in Australia and the only local manufacturer of rail. It is seen as a highly sensitive project, politically, given the steelworks is a major employer in a regional city creating a product not made anywhere else in Australia. Earlier in 2025, the steelworks received a $2.4bn state and federal government bailout package to help keep it afloat and save jobs, after the South Australian government removed control from Gupta's GFG Alliance amid mounting debts. GFG had pledged to decarbonise the plant, which included a plan to use renewable energy-produced hydrogen in the manufacturing process to make sought-after green steel. But the promised investment never arrived. When administrators were appointed in February, the steelworks was found to have racked up more than $1.3bn in debts, including unpaid employee entitlements. A GFG spokesperson said at the time the operation faced 'significant operational and financial challenges' due to external and internal factors. Many of the financial problems facing Gupta's global steel empire are linked to the 2021 collapse of its primary financier Greensill Capital, an event that rattled his global steel-making businesses, which include operations in the UK, continental Europe and the US. The SA premier, Peter Malinauskas, said on Monday that more than 15 national and international parties had passed the final expression-of-interest phase in a positive sign for the steelmaker's transition to new ownership. The sales adviser will now solicit indicative bids from shortlisted parties that expressed interest, with no preferred bidder at this stage. 'The state government's objective has been to transition the ownership of the steelworks to a new credible owner who can invest in Whyalla's future,' Malinauskas said in a statement. 'This strong interest is a positive sign for the future of the Whyalla steelworks and for the future of sovereign steelmaking capability in Australia.'
