Fuel prices rise ahead of interest rate decision

Petrol prices increased by more than 10 cents a litre last week to reach a national average of 237.5c/L, as global oil supply disruptions intensify.

The price of diesel, which is being squeezed by a shortage of refining capacity and high demand from commercial users, rose more than 13c to 286.7c/L, according to the Australian Institute of Petroleum.

Economists have linked the recent price rises in crude oil, which affects petrol prices, to the enduring conflict between the US and Israel against Iran, and recent Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries.

Elevated fuel prices are a major household expense and inflation trigger given they drive up costs across goods and services in the economy, pushing central banks, including in Australia, to consider rate hikes to keep a lid on inflation.

The Reserve Bank is expected to lift the cash rate from 4.25% to 4.6% after its meeting tomorrow in what would be the fourth rate increase this year.

AMP’s chief economist Shane Oliver has warned petrol prices could surpass $2.70/L.

Updated at 05.58 CEST

Rescue crews continue to search for Jordan Yap, 30, a Melbourne man who went missing during a hike on a remote trail in Peru.

A widespread search is under way by private rescue teams, but they’ve so far failed to find any trace of Yap. He last made contact with friends and family on 14 September before setting out on the planned 10-day solo trek. He was last seen near the beginning of the hike across the Cordillera Huayhuash circuit, a challenging, high-altitude adventure.

Yap is considered an experienced hiker and was meant to return from the trek last Wednesday.

The Mountain Rescue Association in Peru said on Saturday a group of 12 rescuers had been deployed, the third group to look for signs of the Australian. A reconnaissance flight has also been carried out to look in difficult-to-reach areas and abysses.

“The mission remains active and will resume when weather conditions permit the continuation of operations safely,” the group wrote overnight on Facebook.

A GoFundMe to help fund the search has raised about $60,000.

Updated at 05.36 CEST

Coastal areas around Perth’s popular City Beach are closed after a whale carcass washed up this morning amid concerns it could attract sharks.

Surf Live Saving WA reported the carcass around 7.30am this morning Perth time. Officials said sharks may be present along the WA coast throughout the year, but people should exercise additional caution at this time.

Officers from the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development and other agencies are monitoring the situation. The Town of Cambridge is working to remove the carcass.

SharkSmart, which monitors shark activity, has issued shark advice for the City Beach area due to the carcass.

Updated at 05.48 CEST

Tight New Zealand election campaign kicks off

The starter’s gun has been fired on the closest New Zealand election campaign in decades, with both major parties staging campaign launches in a tightening race.

AAP reports prime minister Chris Luxon’s ailing coalition faces a fight from Labour under Chris Hipkins to avoid being the first one-term government in half a century.

The contest is close between both the major parties and the broader right and left blocs.

On Sunday, both National and Labour held rallies in Auckland to fire up their bases for the poll push ahead. Based on those events, a month of mud-throwing awaits.

Updated at 04.49 CEST

Gallagher gives update on response to OpenAI incident

Asked by Guardian Australia’s Tom McIlroy as to whether there was new information on the OpenAI incident last week, Katy Gallagher says she had a briefing from Services Australia this morning.

double quotation markThey have all the technical information they need but there are some further information that is still being sought, and there will be follow-up meetings with OpenAI over the course of this week.

I don’t think there is anything further I can update you on, other than that website will not be reactivated. It is the Medicare statistics reporting portal.

The data that was on the Medicare portal had been moved to a public site, she says:

double quotation markThe email that notification, that OpenAI came to, has been redirected to essentially be monitored 24-7, not once a day, so there has been some short-term responses that Services Australia put in.

I expect the forensic investigation to be finished within a matter of weeks, no longer than that. I don’t have a specific date, and that will feed into the rapid review the PM&C are leading.

Updated at 04.19 CEST

In response to a question about the expected interest rate hike tomorrow from the Reserve Bank and whether the government is considering doing anything to take pressure off inflation, Chalmers says it is a “near universal expectation of economists and the market that rates will go up around the world, including in Australia”.

Conflict in the Middle East in particular will put pressure on inflation, he says. On productivity, he adds:

double quotation markThere is no quick and easy way to turn around two decades of underperforming on productivity but we are taking [the] challenge more seriously than our predecessors did.

Updated at 04.31 CEST

Gallagher details origins of lower spending

The minister for finance, Katy Gallagher, says the $1.4bn lower spending had come from cutting back on spending on a few particular programs, including aged care, the PBS, across the childcare system and “a couple of national partnership payments”.

Updated at 04.17 CEST

Chalmers says improvement came from super and investor income, not commodities

Chalmers says payments were down $1.4 bn, and receipts had increased $4.6 bn.

He says the improvements in receipts did not come from commodities:

double quotation markIt is also not from wage earners. It is overwhelmingly from higher super and investor income than what we anticipated in the Treasury’s forecasts in May.

So to be really clear about that, this is not about wage and salary earners, it is not about commodity prices, it is about higher-than-expected super and investor income, higher than was anticipated in the May budget. Mining profits actually came in lower than was expected, so those are some important points of perspective.

Updated at 04.17 CEST

The federal treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and the minister for finance, Katy Gallagher, are speaking to the press about the final budget outcome for the 2025-2026 financial year.

Chalmers says the final budget outcome showed the deficit came in “$6bn better than expected”.

He says:

double quotation markWe have made a lot of progress in the budget and we have made more progress since then, but we know that there is more work to do. The bottom line is better than we inherited, better than it was at the election and better than it was forecast to be in May. It is now around half the deficit for the year just finished, compared to when we came to office.

Updated at 05.26 CEST

Cafes and shoppers at a crossroads as surcharge ban looms

A ban on card surcharges is supposed to deliver savings for Australian shoppers, but the reality could be quite different if retailers raise prices and the banks claw back losses by axing rewards.

AAP reports that the reform, driven by the Reserve Bank of Australia, comes into effect from Thursday, when anyone paying with a debit or credit card will be spared the surprise of extra charges at the till.

Under the new rules, retailers must either absorb the cost or build it into their prices.

They could also offer a discount for cash or payment services such as PayID, which some experts think could lead to savings of up to 10% off the transaction price.

However, dealing in cash means keeping a float and taking it to the bank at the end of the day, which can be difficult given the general decline in branches across the country, and does lay a burden on small business owners.

For those sticking to tap and go, there’s a good chance some businesses will raise prices to offset the merchant fees they still pay to the banks and payment providers to process those payments, which they used to recoup under surcharges.

You can read more on what the changes might mean for you here:

Australia is run on legacy systems that AI agents can easily exploit, former UN cyber negotiator warns

Ageing computer systems used throughout Australia’s government and large sections of the economy are easily exploited by AI agents, increasing the risk that sensitive information could be compromised, Australia’s former chief UN cyber negotiator has warned.

As the government urgently undertakes a forensic investigation into a rogue OpenAI agent accessing Medicare data, the AI expert and Tech Policy Design Institute executive director, Johanna Weaver, said huge vulnerabilities existed across older IT systems. She said:

double quotation markIt is old legacy systems that present the huge vulnerabilities, because large amounts of information and data is stored on these systems that have been around since the beginning of the internet

Read more here:

Here’s what the bogong moths looked like recently in Central Tilba, NSW

More on Mike Baird’s resignation as Cricket Australia chair …

Mike Baird has sensationally quit as Cricket Australia chair, after his own state association refused to back their representative in the fallout over the privatisation of Big Bash League clubs, AAP reports.

The decision comes after Baird lost the support of Cricket NSW, with the country’s most powerful state unhappy with the decision to allow private investment.

Baird had served as NSW’s representative on the board, and approached them recently to confirm they would not support him in the current circumstances.

He did have the option of moving into an independent role, but AAP has been told Baird did not wish to continue without the support of all states.

Baird’s exit comes after Cricket NSW slammed the decision to allow privatisation earlier this month.

“This decision risks leaving cricket in NSW and Australia strategically and financially worse off, with direct consequences for our ability to invest in grassroots cricket,” a Cricket NSW statement read earlier this month.

Paramedics to take the lead in Victoria mental health call outs

Paramedics will take the lead in mental health emergency call outs – not police – under a new agreement announced by Victoria’s health minister, Ingrid Stitt, this morning.

Under the new mental health crisis response protocols, signed by Ambulance Victoria, Victoria police and the health department, these call outs will be treated as a “health-led” response rather than a law-and-order matter.

Victoria’s mental health royal commission recommended in 2021 that paramedics become first responders to Triple Zero calls for mental health crises. In May, the New South Wales government accepted a similar recomendation by both a parliamentary inquiry and an internal police review.

Under the Victorian agreement, police and protective service officers will attend mental health call outs to support paramedics when needed rather than leading the initial response.

People in mental health crisis will also be transferred to hospitals by family members, mental health services, non-emergency patient transport or ambulances, rather than in the back of a police car when it is safe to do so, under the new arrangements.

Stitt said:

double quotation markWhen someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, they deserve a response that puts their health and wellbeing first while keeping them and the community safe.

Updated at 03.28 CEST

Former NSW premier Mike Baird will step down as the chair of Cricket Australia at the body’s next annual general meeting in October.

Baird has been chair since early 2023 and led Cricket Australia’s push to privatize the Big Bash Leagues clubs. Both NSW and Queensland have opposed the plan.

In a statement, Baird said:

double quotation markI believe Australian cricket continues to be well led by the CA Board. Their mix of significant experience and passion for the game gives me great confidence for the future. …

I have been incredibly proud to play a role in the oversight of cricket on the CNSW Board and, over the past six years, the CA Board, including almost four as chair.

David Boon, a former Test batter, will take over as interim chair on 28 October as a process to find a new full-time chair begins.

Updated at 05.37 CEST