Author: roymorgansocial

Ley attacks idea of free everything

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 17-Sep-25

Opposition leader Sussan Ley will use a Committee for Economic Development of Australia speech to call for action to curb government spending. Amongst other things, Ley will contend that the culture of dependency on the government that has emerged since the pandemic is not sustainable and must end. She will argue that providing people with everything for free merely diverts resources from those who need help the most, while she will advocate increased use of means-testing. Ley’s speech today will coincide with growing scrutiny of the Coalition regarding its stance on net zero emissions.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF AUSTRALIA

Teaching Mandarin in Victorian schools, student exchange top of China strategy

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Original article by Chip Le Grand
The Age – Page: Online : 17-Sep-25

Closer education links with China will be a key part of the Victorian government’s so-called ‘China Strategy’. Premier Jacinta Allan has signed a memorandum of understanding during a personal meeting with China’s Minister for Education, Huai Jinpeng. The agreement includes a student exchange program at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels, while Victorian students will learn Mandarin. Allan has also announced that China’s Trina Solar has received approval for a $435m battery project in Victoria. However, she has declined to comment on a transport announcement that she is slated to make later this week, and whether it will include Chinese investment in the Suburban Rail Loop project.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, CHINA. MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, TRINA SOLAR LIMITED

In August Australian unemployment increased 0.8% to 11.1%, while under-employment was unchanged at 10.9%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Sep-25

In August 2025, Australian ‘real’ unemployment rose by 132,000 to 1,776,000 (up 0.8% to 11.1% of the workforce). The rise in unemployment was driven by more people looking for part-time work (up 152,000 to 1,101,000), although there were fewer people looking for full-time work (down 20,000 to 675,000). In addition to the unemployed, a further 1.74 million Australians (10.9% of the workforce, unchanged) were under-employed, i.e. working part-time but looking for more work (up 5,000 from July). In total, 3.52 million Australians (22.0% of the workforce) were either unemployed or under-employed in August. Meanwhile, employment dropped 70,000 to 14,216,000; Roy Morgan estimates the overall workforce size (which adds together the employed and unemployed) at 15,992,000 in August, up 62,000 on a month ago, and representing 69.2% of Australians aged 14+.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence drops 3.4pts to 85.9; driven by rising concerns about personal finances

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Sep-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence fell 3.4pts to 85.9 in the week to 14 September; however, it is now 1.8 points above the same week a year ago (81.9), but 1pt below the 2025 weekly average of 86.9. Analysis by State shows mixed results, with Consumer Confidence down in Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia, but unchanged in Queensland and New South Wales. Now 22% of Australians (unchanged) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 40% (also unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 26% (down 3ppts) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 33% (up 6ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’. Meanwhile, just 10% (down 1ppt) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 29% (up 1ppt) expect ‘bad times’. Only 24% (down 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 32% (down 3ppts) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Migration concerns surge post-pandemic – almost returning to pre-pandemic levels

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Sep-25

New research from Roy Morgan shows that 13% of Australian electors believe that ‘managing immigration and population growth’ is an important issue; this figure has more than doubled since 2023. However, the long-term national trend since 2016 shows that the proportion who cited ‘managing immigration and population growth’ as an important issue reached a pre-pandemic high of 16% in 2019, before declining during COVID and falling to just 6% in June 2023. Since then, the perceived importance of immigration has surged as an issue and, as immigration to Australia increased, is up seven percentage points. While there has been an increase in the perceived importance of immigration as an issue across all age groups since the pandemic, concern varies substantially by age, with older people being significantly more likely to raise immigration as an issue.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Online warning: Digital war has already started

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 17-Sep-25

The head of the Australian Defence Force’s cyber and space operations, Lieutenant General Susan Coyle, addressed the Financial Review Cyber Summit yesterday. Coyle warned that Australia is already at war in the cyber domain; she added that although the nature of war has not changed, the technology to wage war is changing. Coyle noted that Australia will be vulnerable if it does not secure the cyber domain, given that the nation’s critical infrastructure and the ADF’s own military equipment are reliant on it. Alastair MacGibbon from CyberCX in turn warned that devices connected to a hostile ‘totalitarian state’ could be weaponised, including household energy storage batteries and electric vehicles.

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AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE, CYBERCX PTY LTD

PNG treaty trip-up as great game afoot in Pacific

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 17-Sep-25

The federal government’s push to forge closer ties with Pacific nations has received a second setback in as many weeks. Papua New Guinea’s cabinet has yet to endorse a defence treaty with Australia, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had hoped to sign today; he is visiting PNG to mark its 50th anniversary of independence from Australia. PNG’s Prime Minister James Marape stated on Monday that his government is "not yet" at the point of signing the treaty, which will commit the two countries to defend each other in the event of war. Former Biden administration adviser Kurt Campbell has suggested that the delay in signing the treaty could be due to Chinese influence. The Vanuatu goverment refused to sign a bilateral security agreement last week during Albanese’s visit to Port Vila.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, PAPUA NEW GUINEA. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER

Investors back Matos to clean up the ANZ mess

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 17-Sep-25

The ANZ Bank’s share price fell by just 0.6 per cent on Tuesday, despite growing scrutiny over the lender in the wake of a recorded $240m financial penalty for misconduct. Montgomery Investment Management’s chairman Roger Montgomery says investors are betting that the strategy of ANZ’s relatively new CEO Nuno Matos will succeed in closing the valuation gap with its peers. Jon Mott from Barrenjoey in turn says Matos has a clear mandate to implement his turnaround strategy.

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AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, MONTGOMERY INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, BARRENJOEY CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD

Northern Minerals bets on non-China premium

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Original article by Peter Ker, Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 17-Sep-25

Northern Minerals has released the definitive feasibility study for its Browns Range rare earths project in Western Australia. It estimates that the project will cost about $592 million and have a mine life of 11 years. Browns Range will produce rare earths such as dysprosium, terbium, neodymium and praseodymium. The latter two are currently fetching about $US70 per kilogram, but Northern Minerals says it hopes to receive about $US107/kg for the rare earths it produces at Browns Range; it adds that prices could potentially rise to around $US138/kg if the world moves to aggressively decouple from Chinese supply chains.

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NORTHERN MINERALS LIMITED – ASX NTU

ASX stocks to fire as Fed kicks off cuts

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Original article by Gus McCubbing
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 17-Sep-25

Bond traders have fully priced in a 25 basis point interest rate cut at the US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting this week. They are expect at least another four rate cuts over the next year, although David Bassanese from BetaShares and Sebastian Mullins from Schroders contend that the central bank will be less aggressive in reducing monetary policy. Meanwhile, Australian stocks are widely tipped to rally if the Federal Reserve does reduce the cast rate; Jun Bei Liu from Ten Cap says James Hardie Industries stands to benefit the most, given its exposure to the US housing market.

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UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED, SCHRODER INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA LIMITED, JAMES HARDIE INDUSTRIES PLC – ASX JHX, TEN CAP INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD