Author: roymorgansocial

Victoria’s public service wage bill to hit $45.5bn despite job cuts

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Original article by Damon Johnston, Anthony Galloway, Lily McCaffrey
The Australian – Page: 4 : 6-May-26

The Victorian government’s budget papers show that the state’s public sector wages bill is forecast to rise from $40.3bn in the current financial year to $41.1bn in 2026-27. Employee expenses are expected to keep rising over the forward estimates period, reaching $45.5bn by 2030. This is despite the government’s public service job cuts in response to a review by former bureaucrat Helen Silver; the job cuts are estimated to have contributed to government savings of about $4bn. Treasurer Jaclyn Symes says the government had been reducing non-frontline workers across the public sector, but she stresses that it is continuing to invest in essential workers such as teachers, nurses and police officers.

CORPORATES
VICTORIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

Victoria’s $199bn debt bomb explosion

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Original article by Anthony Galloway, Damon Johnston, Lily McCaffrey
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 6-May-26

The Victorian government’s budget papers show that an operating surplus of $727m is expected for 2025-26. This will rise to $1bn in 2026-27, well below the forecast of $1.9bn in the mid-year budget in December. However, the 2026-27 cash deficit – which takes into account expenditure such as infrastructure projects – is slated to be $7.7bn, although the previous forecast was $9.7bn. Meanwhile, yesterday’s state includes $13.8bn worth of new spending, while net debt is forecast to reach $199.3bn in 2030. Interest payments on this debt are expected to rise from $6.8bn in 2024-25 to $11.8bn by 2029-30.

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Our tolerant country is no more

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Original article by James Dowling
The Australian – Page: 6 : 6-May-26

The Royal Commission on Anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion has heard further evidence from Jewish Australians who have been targeted due to their religion. The second day of public hearings was told that Jewish Australians have had to endure verbal abuse and death threats in public places; in one instance a victim of anti-Semitism was told by NSW police that his complaint would not be investigated because it would be a "wasted effort". The Executive Council of Australian Jewry’s co-CEO Peter Wertheim said the far right had been largely responsible for anti-Semitism in past years; however, he noted that the far left and Islamist groups have become drivers of anti-Semitism since the anti-Israel movement started to gather pace in Australia.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION ON ANTISEMITISM AND SOCIAL COHESION, EXECUTIVE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN JEWRY

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence was down 0.6pts to 67.2 in early May before the Reserve Bank meeting

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 6-May-26

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence fell 0.6pts to 67.2 in the week to 3 May, which is the the seventh-lowest Consumer Confidence reading of all time. Consumer Confidence is now 20.3pts lower than a year ago (87.5), and 5.1pts below the 2026 weekly average of 72.3. Analysis by State shows that Consumer Confidence improved in New South Wales and South Australia, but declined in Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia. Now just 16% of Australians (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 54% (unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 20% (unchanged) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 43% (down 1ppt) expect to be ‘worse off’. Only 5% (up 1ppt) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 48% (unchanged) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, 15% (down 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 51% (unchanged) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Diesel ute sales fall off a cliff as fuel prices bite

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Original article by Ryan Cropp
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 6-May-26

Data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries and the Electric Vehicle Council show that China’s BYD was the second-highest selling brand in Australia during April. The figures show that fully electric vehicles accounted for one in six new car sales for the month, with large diesel utes and four-wheel drives bearing the brunt of rising fuel prices. Sales of the Toyota HiLux fell by 31 per cent year-on-year, while Ford Everest sales were down more than 29 per cent. Sales of petrol cars overall fell by 30 per cent in April, while diesel vehicle sales were 21 per cent lower. In contrast, sales of BYD’s Sealion 7 electric car rose by more than 139 per cent year-on-year.

CORPORATES
FEDERAL CHAMBER OF AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRIES, ELECTRIC VEHICLE COUNCIL, TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION AUSTRALIA LIMITED, FORD MOTOR COMPANY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BYD COMPANY LIMITED

Handouts row: Take a hike, says Reserve

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Original article by Matthew Cranston, Thomas Henry
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 6-May-26

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision to increase the cash rate to 4.35 per cent yesterday will add to the pressure that families and businesses are already facing. He adds that the federal governments intends to play a helpful rather than harmful role in the fight against inflation. However, RBA governor Michele Bullock has cautioned against giving households more money in next week’s budget, arguing that this would make it harder for the central bank to bring inflation under control. AMP’s chief economist Shane Oliver says the government should reduce public spending in the budget to help alleviate underlying inflation pressures, while also introducing reforms aimed at boosting productivity and capacity in the economy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

Top end of town turns to bargain brand Anko

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 6-May-26

Wesfarmers-owned Kmart now sells more than one billion Anko-branded items in Australia each year. Wesfarmers CEO Rob Scott has told the Macquarie Australia Conference that more affluent consumers are now buying Anko products, and they are increasingly trusting the quality of the home-brand range. Scott added that Kmart’s new marketplace is "performing exceptionally" and offers more than 100,000 products. Scott noted that any additional increases in official interest rates are likely to put pressure on household budgets, although he says Wesfarmers’ core retailing businesses will perform well in such an environment.

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WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Traders see end in sight for RBA rate rises

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Original article by Cecile Lefort, Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 6-May-26

Money markets still expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to increase official interest rates by another 25 basis points by September; at 4.6 per cent, the cash rate would be at its highest level since 2011. However, bond traders now expect just one more rate rise in 2026, with the chances of two more increases having been pared back from 80 per cent to 65 per cent. IFM Investors’ chief economist Alex Joiner says the RBA’s revised economic forecasts imply that its preferred measure of underlying inflation will return to its target of 2.5 per cent by February. He says this suggests that the central bank could switch to an easing bias in late 2026 or early 2027.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, IFM INVESTORS PTY LTD

Gold mega-merger to ignite further deals

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Original article by Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 6-May-26

Directors of Regis Resources and Vault Minerals have unanimously recommended a proposed $10.7bn merger that would create the third-largest gold miner on the ASX. The combined entity would have annual production of more than 700,000 ounces and a mineral resource base of 20.5 million ounces of gold. Regis CEO Jim Beyer notes that the merged group would have almost $2bn in cash and would consider additional merger deals. Further consolidation in Australia’s gold sector is possible, after a series of deals over the last 18 months.

CORPORATES
REGIS RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX RRL, VAULT MINERALS LIMITED – ASX VAU

Santos boss warns investors are misreading energy crisis

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Original article by Colin Packham
The Australian – Page: 17 : 6-May-26

Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher has cautioned against further federal government intervention in response to the Iran war-induced energy crisis. He has told the Macquarie Australia Conference that it would be an "act of self-harm" to impose an additional tax burden on the oil and gas industry, arguing that the sector already contributes via royalties and the petroleum resource rent tax. Gallagher also warned that supply disruptions and elevated risk across global energy markets will persist for some time; he noted that the "unprecedented" release of strategic petroleum reserves globally will result in ongoing volatility as governments rebuild their stockpiles.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO