Author: roymorgansocial

Coalition and One Nation’s plan to ditch net zero would not lower power prices, CSIRO report finds

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Original article by Graham Readfearn
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 15-Jul-26

The CSIRO’s annual GenCost report has found that renewables will continue to be the cheapest option for generating electricity in 2030. Both the Coalition and One Nation have advocated adding nuclear power to the nation’s energy mix, but the CSIRO has concluded that this would be the most expensive way to generate electricity among the current options. The report has also refuted claims by the Coalition and One Nation that scrapping Australia’s net-zero emissions target would result in lower electricity prices; it found that generation costs are likely to rise after 2030 regardless of Australia’s net zero policy, although prices are then likely to stabilise.

CORPORATES
CSIRO, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, ONE NATION PARTY

Politically engaged – but very much worried about buying a home: study reveals young Australians’ anxieties

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Original article by Dan Jervis-Bardy
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 15-Jul-26

The Growing Up in Australia study began in 2004, and it has tracked about 10,000 young people and their families every two years since childhood. The two groups in the cohort are now aged 19-20 and 23-24, and the latest survey results for 2023-24 comprises 4,168 respondents. Some 73 per cent stated that they are "quite a bit" or "very concerned" about being able to afford to buy a home, ahead of global economic problems (cited by 42 per cent of respondents) and climate change (41 per cent). The longitudinal study also found that just 15 per cent of respondents expressed a "lot of trust" or "some trust" in politicians and political parties. This study is conducted by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, in partnership with the Department of Social Services and Roy Morgan.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF FAMILY STUDIES, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence up 0.6pts to 75.3 with more confidence about personal finances over the next year

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Jul-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 0.6pts to 75.3 in the week to 12 July; however, Consumer Confidence is 11.2pts lower than a year ago (86.5), but 3.6pts above the 2026 weekly average of 71.7. Analysis by State shows that Consumer Confidence increased marginally in Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia, was down in Queensland, and unchanged in New South Wales. Now 16% of Australians (up 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 51% (unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 24% (up 2ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 39% (down 1ppt) expect to be ‘worse off’. Only 6% (down 1ppt) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 37% (down 3ppts) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, just 19% (unchanged) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 43% (up 1ppt) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

June Real Unemployment in Australia up 1% to 11.7%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Jul-26

In June 2026, Australian ‘real’ unemployment rose 156,000 to 1,860,000 (11.7% of the workforce, up 1%), while under-employment fell 15,000 to 1,488,000 (down 0.1% to 9.4%). In total, 3.35 million Australians (21.1% of the workforce) were either unemployed or under-employed in June. Roy Morgan estimates the overall workforce size (which adds together the employed and unemployed) at 15,888,000 in June, up 28,000 on a month ago, and representing 67.7% of Australians aged 14+. Overall employment was down 128,000 to 14,028,000. The decline was driven by a fall in part-time employment (down 279,000 to 4,956,000, and equivalent to 35.3% of employed Australians). In contrast, full-time employment was up 151,000 to 9,072,000 (equivalent to 64.7% of employed Australians). The June Roy Morgan Unemployment estimates were obtained by surveying an Australia-wide cross section of people aged 14+.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Chinese rare earths investors blocked

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 15-Jul-26

Northern Minerals’ executive chairman Adam Handley has welcomed the federal government’s latest move aimed at getting shareholders with Chinese links to divest their holdings. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has told the rare earths producer to disregard all votes cast by the three shareholders in question at any of the company’s meetings. It follows a recent warning from Northern Minerals that the three investors had failed to comply with an order to divest their holdings by 2 July. Northern Minerals’ undeveloped Browns Range deposit in Western Australia includes terbium and dysprosium; China accounts for 99 per cent of global supply of these heavy rare earths.

CORPORATES
NORTHERN MINERALS LIMITED – ASX NTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Chalmers’ great tax cut conundrum

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Original article by Thomas Henry
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-Jul-26

Analysis by the independent Parliamentary Budget Office has concluded that an eventual return to a budget surplus will be dependent on a number of factors. They include reining in the cost of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, a $336bn increase in personal income tax revenue, public service job cuts and the federal government’s changes to negative gearing, capital gains tax and trusts. The PBO has used its medium-term fiscal outlook to warn that the government will need to choose between providing income tax cuts and significant spending cuts if the budget is to be returned to surplus in the next decade.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE

AI usage shows an even gender split but gender differences emerge in platform choices

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Jul-26

New research from Roy Morgan shows that AI users in Australia are almost evenly split between men (50.3%) and women (49.7%). Overall, there are 6.8 million male users and 6.7 million female users of AI. This balance is largely reflected in the gender breakdown of OpenAI’s ChatGPT user base (the most widely used AI platform for Australians). ChatGPT has an almost even gender split, used by 5.3 million women (50.6% of users) and just under 5.2 million men (49.4%). However, other leading AI platforms show a skew towards male users, including Google Gemini (2.8 million men cf. 2.1 million women), Microsoft Copilot (2.3 million men cf. 1.7 million women), and Anthropic’s Claude (459,000 men cf. 318,000 women). In contrast, Canva’s Magic Studio stands out as a clear exception, with a heavy skew towards female users who make up more than 60% of its user base (821,000 women cf. 547,000 men).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, OPENAI INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, ANTHROPIC PBC, CANVA INCORPORATED

KPMG prepares for big job losses

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Original article by Edmund Tadros, Hannah Wootton
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 15-Jul-26

A spokesman for KPMG Australia has advised that the firm is reviewing its operating model, workforce needs and cost base. Significant job cuts are expected in the wake of KPMG’s audit scandal, and the firm’s management is believed to be looking at cutting several hundred jobs; however, sources have indicated that the firm could potentially shed up to 1,000 jobs. KPMG is also said to be planning to reduce its partners’ remuneration for 2026-27 by up to 20 per cent. The firm has 700 partners and about 9,000 employees.

CORPORATES
KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Unions to stage fun fair at port strike

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 15 : 15-Jul-26

BHP and a coalition of unions held talks in the Fair Work Commission yesterday, in a bid to avert industrial action at the resources group’s Port Hedland iron ore export hub. However, the unions have advised that they intend to proceed with protected industrial action tomorrow, after failing to reach an agreement with BHP. Members of the Electrical Trades Union, the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union and the Australian Workers’ Union will go on strike for eight hours. The unions have ruled out establishing a picket line at BHP’s Port Hedland facilities and will not prevent non-union ‘strikebreakers’ from accessing the site. They will instead hold a family-friendly protest, which will include a barbecue and face painting.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Biggest house price fallers since the budget

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Original article by Lucy Slade
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 & 26 : 15-Jul-26

Analysis by data provider Cotality shows that house prices in some of the most premium suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne have recorded the biggest falls since the federal government’s budget in May. House prices in Bellevue, which is Sydney’s most expensive suburb, fell by two per cent during May and June; other prestigious suburbs that have record sharp falls in home values include Balmain East, Double Bay and North Bondi. House prices in affluent inner-city and bayside suburbs of Melbourne have also fallen; they include Albert Park, Collingwood, Elwood and Port Melbourne.

CORPORATES
COTALITY