Author: roymorgansocial

IMF calls on RBA to raise rates

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Nov-23

The International Monetary Fund now believes that Australia’s inflation rate will not return to the Reserve Bank’s target range of 2-3 per cent until early 2026. The central bank itself expects inflation to return to the upper limit of its target band by late 2025. Abdoul Wane, the IMF’s mission chief to Australia, notes that although the inflation rate is gradually declining, further interest rate increases are needed in order to bring inflation under control more quickly. Wane also contends that the federal and state governments should defer some infrastructure projects in order to alleviate inflationary pressures.

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INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Melbourne Institute & Roy Morgan – Taking The Pulse of the Nation: Financial pressures are seen widely as the key barrier to getting a university education

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Nov-23

Taking the Pulse of the Nation survey data collected in June 2023 asked respondents why they believe that people of a similar background to themselves in their 20s and 30s might not pursue a university education. Respondents could choose multiple responses from a set of 16 reasons that can be broadly categorised as financial barriers, personal barriers, and social barriers. The survey found that Australian-born residents are more likely than residents born overseas to believe that financial barriers prevent people from getting a university education. This is despite the fact that Australian-born residents are more likely to be eligible for financial help to support them while they study. The data also reveals that a similar number of both university-educated people and those who have never entered the higher education system believe that financial barriers are putting university out of the reach of young people in Australia. To view all Melbourne Institute – Roy Morgan Taking The Pulse of the Nation Reports visit the TTPN website portal: https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/data/ttpn.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH

BHP warns against Same Job, Same Pay

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Original article by Cameron England
The Australian – Page: 13 & 16 : 2-Nov-23

BHP CEO Mike Henry has reiterated that the ‘same job, same pay’ provisions of the Closing Loopholes Bill could potentially force the resources group to discontinue its FutureFit training academies. Henry says 1,500 people have been inducted into the academies, which provide them with the skills that are needed to work in the mining industry. Henry also contends that the labour hire reforms would increase costs more broadly and make Australia less attractive as an investment destination. Henry says the proposed reforms are the most significant and far-reaching changes to Australia’s industrial relations laws since the WorkChoices regime.

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BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

First foreign nationals evacuated from Gaza named

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Original article by Lucy Cormack
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 2-Nov-23

Qatar has mediated a deal between Egypt, Israel and Hamas to allow up to 500 foreign passport holders in Gaza to enter Egypt via the Rafah crossing. Sources at the border have indicated that the first group of evacuees have reached the Egyptian side of the Rafah. The General Authority for Crossings and Borders had earlier published a spreadsheet listing the names and personal details of the people who had been cleared to leave Gaza; the list includes at least 34 Australians, and 23 of them are among the foreign nationals to have reached Egypt. Some 88 Australians were in Gaza when hostilities commenced after the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel on 7 October.

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Super complaints soar 32pc: watchdog

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Original article by Hannah Wootton, Lucy Dean
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 2-Nov-23

Data from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority shows that the number of complaints it received about superannuation funds rose by 32 per cent in 2022-23. This includes a 136 per cent increase in complaints regarding delays in processing insurance and death benefit claims. Super Consumers Australia director Xavier O’Halloran notes that some super fund members have had to wait for more than a year to have these claims paid out, and he has called for regulatory action to force super funds to process claims more promptly.

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AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL COMPLAINTS AUTHORITY, SUPER CONSUMERS AUSTRALIA

Hamas leader vows to repeat Israel attacks again and again

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Original article by Natalie O’Brien, Tiffany Bakker
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 2-Nov-23

Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad has used an interview on Lebanese television to warn Israel that it can expect more terrorist attacks similar to the one on 7 October that sparked the latest war in the Middle East. Hamad said that Hamas has the "determination, the resolve and the capabilities to fight"; he added that "Israel is a country that has no place on our land" and that it must be "finished". The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claims that nearly 8,800 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas in response to the terrorist attack. Meanwhile, the United Nations has criticised Israel’s airstrike on the Jabalia refugee camp on the Gaza strip. At least 47 people are believed to have been killed, including a Hamas commander; Hamas claims that seven of its hostages are among the dead.

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Drama still booming Down Under, but a downturn could be coming

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Original article by Karl Quinn
The Age – Page: Online : 2-Nov-23

Data from Screen Australia highlights the continued strength of the nation’s television and film industry. The annual Drama Report shows that a total of $2.34bn was spent on the production of local and international scripted content in 2022-23; this includes broadcast television, streaming and video-on-demand content, as well as theatrical feature films. It is slightly down on the $2.43bn spent in 2021-22, although it is still the second-highest figure on record. Foreign film and TV productions accounted for $1.22bn of the expenditure in 2022-23.

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SCREEN AUSTRALIA

Iron ore tipped to hit $US130 a tonne this year

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 2-Nov-23

Citigroup says there is potential for the Chinese government to provide further support for the nation’s property sector, after policymakers recently issued an additional one trillion yuan ($217.8 billion) worth of central government bonds. The firm contends that the iron ore price could rally if China pursues further stimulus in order to "engineer" a strong start to 2024. Citi has upgraded its short-term price forecast for the steel input from $US100 per tonne to $US120/tonne, but adds that further Chinese stimulus measures could see it test the $US130/tonne level by the end of 2023.

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CITIGROUP INCORPORATED

PM’s China visit life and death for jailed writer

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 1-Nov-23

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has indicated that he will raise issues such as human rights and China’s growing presence in the South China Sea during his upcoming official visit to Beijing and Shanghai. The family of Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun has urged Albanese to also raise his case with Chinese officials. Yang has been detained in China for nearly five years without receiving an official verdict on alleged espionage offences. Yang’s two sons are concerned that he will die from medical neglect if he is not released soon. Journalist Cheng Lei recently returned to Melbourne after three years’ detention in China on similar charges.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Teenagers experiencing intimate partner violence at troubling rates, research finds

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Original article by Sacha Payne
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 1-Nov-23

Data from the Australian Institute of Family Studies shows that nearly one-third of teenagers aged 18-19 have experienced violence from an intimate partner in the last year. This includes emotional, physical and sexual abuse, with the latter being more prevalent among teenage women. AIFS senior research officer Karlee O’Donnell says that many participants in the survey reported being subjected to two or three types of intimate violence. The AIFS’s Growing Up in Australia longitudinal study is one of the largest of its type in the world, and it is undertaken in partnership with Roy Morgan and the federal Department of Social Services.

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