Australia news live: Three major banks predict interest rates to fall next year; ABC boss acknowledges ‘lessons’ from legal losses

Three of four major banks now expect interest rates to fall next yearLuca IttimaniTop economists at ANZ, Commonwealth Bank and NAB are now predicting interest rates will not rise any higher this year and will start to fall from the middle of next year.ANZ today changed its rate call to predict two cash rate cuts in 2027. It had previously expected rates to remain steady for the foreseeable future.HSBC’s Paul Bloxham also has now changed and expects no change until cuts in late 2027. Bloxham said: double quotation markInflation is still too high and is set to rise further before it falls. That being said, the RBA has already taken significant action to deal with this surge in inflation – and, critically, the action is working … We expect the RBA to be on hold in June. Although there is some risk the RBA might choose to hike again beyond that, we expect the weakening in growth to convince them to be on hold. Commonwealth Bank has not changed its prediction that the RBA will stay on hold before cutting twice in mid-2027. NAB expects a similar trajectory.But financial markets are still betting a hike is more likely than not over the next 12 months. Westpac today reaffirmed its view that the cash rate will rise in August and September this year, with no cuts until 2028. Its chief economist, Luci Ellis, today predicted inflation would peak at 4.7% late this year, lower than she previously expected but still higher than the RBA now expects it to be.ShareUpdated at 07.33 CESTKey eventsWeather fronts to bring rain, gusty winds to southern states, showers to southwest WAA front will bring rain, showers and gusty winds to South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and southern NSW this weekend, while a second front brings showers to far southwest Western Australia.An unstable air mass will maintain showers and storms over northwest and central WA, while onshore winds bring showers to eastern Queensland.On Saturday, Brisbane will hit 24C, Darwin will hit 33C, Perth will see a high of 18C, Adelaide will experience 19C, Melbourne a high of 17C, Hobart 18C, Canberra 17C and Sydney 22C.ShareUpdated at 08.51 CESTAmanda MeadeABC managing director Hugh Marks says it would be hypocritical not to talk to journalists who work for Rupert Murdoch.In an interview with Ben Fordham on 2GB Marks said he couldn’t comment on why other managing directors didn’t come on the commercial radio station, but he believed in transparency.Fordham: double quotation markDid you know that a lot of ABC staff members were angry the first time they read quotes from Hugh Marks in the Australian? Marks: double quotation markWell, I’d be hypocritical, wouldn’t I, if I didn’t talk to everybody in the industry on the same basis that we expect everybody in politics to talk to us at the ABC. So being transparent, being out and about and … Talking to everybody and putting yourself in an environment where you are and you do have to justify the decisions you make I think is important. Since December Marks has granted the Murdoch broadsheet three exclusive interviews.The former CEO of Nine Entertainment and independent producer said it was “not an easy decision” to take on the job of managing director of the ABC because he “had a nice life”, but he believes in a strong public broadcaster. double quotation markSo it was a difficult decision to do, but it’s important. I think a strong public broadcaster is important and as a public broadcasters we have to accept that the taxpayer is our owner through the parliament of Australia. ShareUpdated at 08.30 CESTMore Australians travelling to Indonesia; New Zealand and Japan still popular, ABS statistics showAustralian Bureau of Statistics data shows the number of short-term trips to Indonesia rose 16% over the year to April.View image in fullscreenKuta Beach in Bali. The number of Australians holidaying in Indonesia has risen strongly over the past year, according to ABS data. Photograph: Made Nagi/EPAThe monthly arrivals and departures data show the three leading destination countries for Australian residents on short-term trips in April were: - Indonesia (161,700 trips)- New Zealand (135,190)- Japan (108,540)The highest number of resident returns from short-term trips was for New South Wales (354,140), while the Northern Territory recorded the fewest (8,520).ShareUpdated at 08.33 CESTAndrew MessengerCourt approves class-action style lawsuit against Queensland puberty blocker banThe Queensland civil and administrative tribunal has approved a class-action style anti-discrimination lawsuit against the state’s ban on gender affirming care.Transgender children are banned from accessing puberty blockers or hormone therapy in Queensland public hospitals. Both drugs are still available for cisgender children.The state unlawfully imposed the ban in January 2025. That order was thrown out by the supreme court in October, before being reimposed the same day.In December, health minister Tim Nicholls announced the ban would be continued until 2031.The LGBTQI legal service said Qcat had allowed another lawsuit against the ban to proceed as a representative action, akin to a class action. They will represent all young Queenslanders diagnosed with gender dysphoria who had yet to commence puberty blockers or hormone treatment at the time of the original order.It also ordered that Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls be joined as a respondent to the proceeding.LGBTI legal service senior solicitor Emma Bastable said “every young person who meets the class definition is automatically included unless they choose to opt out by a date that will be set by the tribunal”.“This case is not limited to young people who were already on a treatment pathway, with the Tribunal finding that being denied the opportunity to be considered for treatment is enough,” Bastable said. double quotation markThe Tribunal has recognised that exclusion itself can cause harm, even before a young person reaches the point of treatment. ShareUpdated at 08.34 CESTNick VisserThat’s all from me. Cait Kelly will take things from here. Enjoy your weekend!ShareOne Nation fundraiser in Melbourne cancelled, but event will take place elsewhereA fundraiser for One Nation scheduled for tonight in Melbourne has been cancelled after the venue decided not to hold the event, according to Victoria police. The event was set to be held at Giorgio Casa, a bistro in Moonee Ponds.A spokesperson for One Nation told Guardian Australia the event will go ahead at another location tonight, but did not specify where. The spokesperson said police “did express concern about protest activity at the event”. They added the event was “sold out”, but wouldn’t put a number on how many people were expected to attend.A spokesperson for Victoria police said officers were not aware of any threats made against the event.“The decision not to hold the event was made by the venue,” the spokesperson said.A number of groups were planning to protest against the event, saying Victorians needed to “stand up and fight back” and “drive Hanson out of Melbourne”.View image in fullscreenOne Nation leader Pauline Hanson. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAPShareUpdated at 06.57 CESTThree of four major banks now expect interest rates to fall next yearLuca IttimaniTop economists at ANZ, Commonwealth Bank and NAB are now predicting interest rates will not rise any higher this year and will start to fall from the middle of next year.ANZ today changed its rate call to predict two cash rate cuts in 2027. It had previously expected rates to remain steady for the foreseeable future.HSBC’s Paul Bloxham also has now changed and expects no change until cuts in late 2027. Bloxham said: double quotation markInflation is still too high and is set to rise further before it falls. That being said, the RBA has already taken significant action to deal with this surge in inflation – and, critically, the action is working … We expect the RBA to be on hold in June. Although there is some risk the RBA might choose to hike again beyond that, we expect the weakening in growth to convince them to be on hold. Commonwealth Bank has not changed its prediction that the RBA will stay on hold before cutting twice in mid-2027. NAB expects a similar trajectory.But financial markets are still betting a hike is more likely than not over the next 12 months. Westpac today reaffirmed its view that the cash rate will rise in August and September this year, with no cuts until 2028. Its chief economist, Luci Ellis, today predicted inflation would peak at 4.7% late this year, lower than she previously expected but still higher than the RBA now expects it to be.ShareUpdated at 07.33 CESTKPMG awarded $26m in government contracts since leaks revealedLuca IttimaniThe federal government has awarded KPMG 36 contracts worth $26m since it was revealed that the audit firm had leaked confidential client data, taking KPMG’s total published contract value to $653m.KPMG had 297 active contracts as of 11 June, according to parliamentary library analysis commissioned by the Greens. The Department of Defence accounts for $397m of that total.Of the active KPMG contracts, $26m are for audit services, including for the Reserve Bank ($1.65m), the CSIRO ($4.9m), the Australian Electoral Commission ($3.15m), the Bureau of Meteorology ($2m), the national emergency management authority ($1.98m) and the departments of industry ($1.74m) and veterans affairs ($1.75m).The analysis shows the government has executed 31 active contracts worth nearly $24m since the KPMG allegations were made public on 24 March. They include two separate $59,000 audit contracts with the clean energy regulator, a $172,000 audit contract with the department of climate change and a $82,500 audit contract with the BoM.Separate Guardian Australia analysis of government tender data shows another $2m of contracts have been awarded since the allegations were publicised which are not included in the Library’s analysis, including two Defence contracts worth $1.6m and a $325,662 Home Affairs “high-risk high-value” contract for Nauru procurement.The federal government has said all of its KPMG contracts will be reviewed. The Greens’ finance spokesperson, Barbara Pocock, said KPMG should be banned from any future contracts. Pocock said:“This government is completely addicted to KPMG … As scandals are being publicly exposed, Australians are rightly asking why the Labor government continues to give them contracts worth millions.”ShareUpdated at 06.27 CESTHugh Marks says ABC management has changed since major legal lossesAmanda MeadeABC boss Hugh Marks says there are “definitely lessons” to be learned from the ABC’s two high profile legal losses, Antoinette Lattouf and Heston Russell, but the ABC under his management has had a “very low” number of legal suits.“There’s been a big change in personnel over the time since those cases at all levels, including at the MD level, obviously,” Marks told Ben Fordham in an interview on 2GB.Marks replaced David Anderson as managing director a little over a year ago. He told Senate estimates last year that the Lattouf unlawful dismissal case had “many failings” and has cost the public broadcaster more than $2.5m in external costs alone.View image in fullscreenABC managing director Hugh Marks. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPIn 2023 former commando Russell won his defamation case against the ABC and was awarded $390,000 after a federal court judge found the public broadcaster did not prove its reporting was in the public interest.Today, Marks, a former CEO of Nine Entertainment, told Fordham he has many years of experience in running major legal cases. double quotation markAt the moment, we have a very low number of defamation or legal cases against the ABC and that’s the way I’d like to keep it. Being in this business though, and if you wanna do good stories, sometimes you’re gonna put yourself at exposure to a legal claim and that’s just part of the business. ShareUpdated at 06.27 CESTLisa CoxBlack Mountain warned about lack of data about potential damage to Kimberley water and ecosystemsContinuing on from the last post, documents released through freedom of information show department officials repeatedly warned Black Mountain it had not provided enough information about water resources and ecosystems that could be harmed by its gas drilling plans.Lock the Gate Alliance WA coordinator Simone van Hattem said “Australians don’t want to see the precious Kimberley industrialised and turned into a dumping ground for toxic chemicals” and “the community will make known all the very same concerns the department has”.Guardian Australia has approached Watt and the environment department for comment.ShareUpdated at 05.54 CESTLisa CoxWA Kimberley fracking proposal opens for public consultationAn American company’s proposal to frack Western Australia’s Kimberley region, part of the world’s most intact tropical savanna, has been opened to public consultation.It comes days after Guardian Australia reported on newly released documents that revealed concerns among environment department officials about the standard of Black Mountain Energy’s environmental assessments. The federal government opened the project for four weeks of public consultation late on Thursday.Black Mountain Energy, through its subsidiary Bennett Resources, has proposed up to 20 “appraisal” wells for its Valhalla project. Appraisal wells are drilled to assess the quality and commercial potential of a gas resource. At full production, fracking projects can involve dozens, hundreds or even thousands of wells.View image in fullscreenThe Fitzroy River in the Kimberley. Photograph: Alex Westover/Environs KimberleyThe development is located near a creek that flows into the national heritage-listed Fitzroy River, potentially opening WA’s Fitzroy valley landscape to fracking and affecting the region’s endangered species.Environment groups have called on environment minister Murray Watt to strike out the proposal, with 10,000 people contacting his office over the past week, according to Environs Kimberley executive director Martin Pritchard. double quotation markThere is no way Environment Minister Murray Watt can approve fracking the Kimberley and have a shred of environmental credibility. Murray Watt knows this, 10,000 people have just emailed to tell him. Now he needs to act. ShareUpdated at 05.40 CESTDouglas SmithMiner Fortescue signs new deal with Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura peopleA mining company owned by billionaire Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has struck a new agreement with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) people of Western Australia’s Pilbara region.Forrest’s company, Fortesque Metals Group (FMG), signed a Native Title and co-management agreement with PKKP in Karratha, to boost economic participation and business development for traditional owners.View image in fullscreenAustralian businessman Andrew Forrest. Photograph: Lukas Coch/EPAIn the arrangement PKKP mining equipment, including haul trucks and electric excavators, will be leased to FMG to support mining operations in the Pilbara.Traditional owner and chairperson of PKKP Enterprises, Terry Drage said the agreement also allowed for better protection of sacred sites: double quotation markOne of the key parts of the Co-Management Agreement is that Fortescue and PKKP need to share information much earlier about mining activities and heritage so we have the best chance of protecting important places. We have always said we are not opposed to mining, but it has to be done in the right way with traditional owner decision-making front and centre. These agreements are going to create a lasting legacy for our people, and we are really proud that we have signed this with Fortescue so that we don’t have to rely on the government or courts to protect our important places. Forrest said FMG had “never seen native title agreements as simply a transaction”, and that “the custodians of that Country should have a genuine voice in what happens there and share in the opportunities it creates”.ShareUpdated at 05.24 CESTFirefighter union and boss named as trying to block publication of corruption watchdog reportFirefighter union boss Peter Marshall has been revealed as the person trying to block the publication of a corruption watchdog report. Marshall and the United Firefighters Union were revealed today as the applicants seeking to stop the release of the Operation Richmond report.AAP reports the operation, launched by the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission in 2019, investigated the Victorian government’s negotiations with the union. IBAC indicated the final report would be released to the public by 1 July but that plan was sidetracked by Marshall and the union’s supreme court injunction application filed in May.View image in fullscreenSecretary of the United Firefighters Union Peter Marshall (left). Photograph: Jay Kogler/AAPAt the 22 May hearing, Justice Claire Harris rejected their bid to have their identities kept secret through a pseudonym order. She found there was insufficient reasons to grant the order given the information was already in the public domain.The judge granted a temporary pseudonym order to allow the two applicants to appeal her decision to the Victorian court of appeal. But that appeal was rejected today, with the appeal court finding Justice Harris had not made an error.The court ordered their names be publicised and the applicants’ barrister Paul Holdenson KC indicated he would not be appealing to the high court. The supreme court subsequently confirmed the applicants were the United Firefighters Union of Australia and the union’s national secretary Peter Marshall.Marshall said he and the union were prohibited from talking about the case.“Examinations were in private, confidentiality notices were issued. The law still prohibits us from commenting on what is in the report and what it may say about us or anyone else,” he told the ABC..ShareUpdated at 05.09 CESTJack LarkinVicRoads website operational after being offline for a weekA major website upgrade for VicRoads is finally operational after the online payment portal was down for almost a week.The planned upgrade took place on Friday last week, with plans for it to be operational after the long weekend. The payment portal took a few days longer to come online, leading making it hard for customers to pay for car registrations, book driving tests or renew their licences.A statement on the website reads: double quotation markWe’ve delivered a major upgrade to our systems to deliver faster and more modern services. This is part of our commitment to simplify licensing and registration solutions, and to keep pace with the needs of Victorians today and tomorrow. Most online services are now available.ShareUpdated at 04.50 CESTCaitlin CassidyPolice still looking for Sydney woman, after charging man with murderPolice spoke a moment ago in Sydney after a 33-year-old man was charged with murder as part of investigations into the alleged kidnapping of a woman in the city’s northwest earlier this week.The 58-year-old mother failed to return home after visiting family in Winston Hills on Monday, prompting the investigation, police said.On Thursday, the man, who is known to police, was arrested in Tomerong on the South Coast of New South Wales. Investigations are continuing into the whereabouts of the woman, with police seeking assistance from residents in the Winston Hills area.Police said they believed the man and woman were meeting on Monday to talk about “perhaps, borrowing some money, but that ultimately, we don’t know whether that exchange occurred”. double quotation markThey are known to each other, but we will allege that communications directed toward our missing lady were hostile in nature prior to that meeting. We have significant concerns … and as I say, we’re just seeking the assistance of community to hopefully locate the 58-year-old woman. Police told reporters they were satisfied there was “sufficient evidence” to put the charges to the court, despite not having found the woman’s body, citing mobile phone records.The woman is a mother of three children, and a carer for her elderly parents, and is estranged from one of her children, police said. double quotation markThe fact that no one has been able to contact her or heard from her is significant for investigators … I can only say that when family were informed of action taken by police yesterday, they were obviously shocked. The man appeared before court this morning and has been refused bail to Parramatta local court on 12 August.ShareUpdated at 04.41 CESTJosh TaylorVocus routing issue affects internet nationally in AustraliaA routing issue for fibre network provider Vocus caused intermittent outages for internet users across Australia this morning.Vocus provides fibre links across Australia and connecting to the rest of the world, making it the backbone for much of the internet and online services.The outage, which occurred at about 9am this morning, is understood to be an issue with a border gateway protocol configuration – which is used to determine the fastest way to transmit information across the internet.Vocus indicated the issue was largely resolved as of midday.A spokesperson for NBN Co confirmed it was not an NBN issue: double quotation markWe are aware of an issue with broadband services being reported by customers nationally, across different internet service providers.Nbn is investigating with internet service providers what may be occurring. Our initial checks have confirmed the issue does not seem to be related to the operation of the nbn network.We are actively monitoring the situation and we will provide more updates soon. ShareUpdated at 04.29 CESTMatt Canavan: Nationals on ‘same page’ with One Nation to oust Labor governmentCanavan was also asked about One Nation’s “fire the liar” campaign, which has reportedly raised $2.7m in donations since the party launched a dedicated funding drive.He said there was “a lot of anger out there, and a lot of frustration”, while adding “good on One Nation for doing this”. double quotation markI think you’re seeing that exercised through the vote for a minor party. I can understand that, as I’ve said since I became leader, I understand the frustration with the major parties. I’ve been in that frustrated camp, but I truly believe what our country needs is a solid, coherent economic plan for our future. The Liberal and Nationals parties will do that, but look, I welcome everybody trying to take down this government, because that is the first step. So, good on One Nation for doing this. They’re saying that that funding, that now over $2m, is going to be used to root out Labor members of parliament, and I’d encourage them on that front, because we have seen Pauline Hanson spend a lot of time campaigning in the seats of Liberal and National members. That’s not going to help change the government. We’re all on the same page here of getting rid of this government. ShareUpdated at 05.18 CEST

View Original Article