Author: roymorgansocial

More than 6.7 million Australians work from home

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

New research from Roy Morgan shows that over 6.7 million Australians (representing 46% of employed Australians) work from home at least some of the time, paid or unpaid. The remaining 54% work entirely in-person. A slim majority of full-time employees (51%) work from home at least some of the time, compared to 36% of part-time employees. Australians living in capital cities are more likely to work from home than those who live in regional areas. A majority of workers from Australia’s largest cities of Sydney (55%) and Melbourne (52%) work from home, as do 51% in the nation’s capital in Canberra/ACT. Working from home rates are lower in the smaller capital cities led by Hobart (45%) and Adelaide (44%), and followed by Brisbane (43%) and Perth (40%). In contrast, regional areas show lower adoption of working from home, led by Queensland (40%), (NSW 39%) and Victoria (37%).

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence softens ahead of RBA interest rates decision, down 1.3pts to 89.3

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence fell 1.3pts to 89.3 in the week to 10 August. However, Consumer Confidence is now 5.4 points above the same week a year ago (83.9), and 2.5pts above the 2025 weekly average of 86.8. Analysis by State shows mixed results, with Consumer Confidence up in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, but down in Queensland and South Australia. Now 21% of Australians (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 40% (unchanged) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 28% (unchanged) of respondents expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 30% (up 2ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’. Now just 13% (up 1ppt) of respondents expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 26% (down 1ppt) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, 24% (down 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 33% (up 1ppt) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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

Coalition vows Palestine policy reversal once in power

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 7 : 13-Aug-25

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has defended his government’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state at the ­United Nations’ General Assembly meeting in September. Albanese says it will send a message to Israel that "enough is enough", and he is confident that the international community can prevent Hamas from playing any role in a future Palestinian state. Meanwhile, Opposition leader Sussan Ley says the shadow cabinet has resolved that a future Coalition government would revoke recognition of a Palestinian state; she argues that this must only occur at the conclusion of a proper peace process.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

One of Australia’s largest exports to the US escapes tariff hit

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Original article by Olivia Ireland
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

US President Donald Trump has confirmed that gold imports will continue to be exempt from his administration’s tariffs regime. Trump has clarified the situation in response to the Customs & Border Protection agency’s recent ruling that one-kilogram and 100-ounce gold bars will be subject to the country-based tariffs regime that took effect on 7 August. Official data shows that Australia exported $11bn worth of non-monetary gold to the US during the first four months of 2025, compared with $2.95bn for the whole of 2024.

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

In July Australian unemployment was virtually unchanged at 10.3%, but under-employment surged to 10.9%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

In July 2025, Australian ‘real’ unemployment fell by 10,000 to 1,644,000 (down 0.1% to 10.3% of the workforce). The small dip in unemployment was driven by fewer people looking for part-time work (down 157,000 to 949,000), which was offset by people looking for full-time work (up 147,000 to 695,000). In addition to the unemployed, a further 1.74 million Australians (up 1% to 10.9% of the workforce) were under-employed, i.e. working part-time but looking for more work (up 158,000 from June). In total, 3.38 million Australians (21.2% of the workforce) were either unemployed or under-employed in July. Meanwhile, Roy Morgan estimates the overall workforce size (which adds together the employed and unemployed) at 15,930,000 in July, up 43,000 on a month ago, and representing 69% of Australians aged 14+.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

RBA’s grim growth warning

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 13-Aug-25

The Reserve Bank of Australia has downgraded its forecast for productivity growth in the medium-term from one per cent to just 0.7 per cent. RBA governor Michele Bullock says lower productivity growth is already resulting in slower growth in real wages; she adds that the central bank cannot do anything to lift productivity, and the outlook for this metric will depend on what the federal government does in response to its economic reform summit next week. The RBA has also warned that the domestic economy can now sustain a GDP growth rate of just two per cent a year. Meanwhile, economists expect another official interest rate cut by the end of 2025, after the RBA reduced it by 25 basis points to 3.6 per cent on Tuesday.

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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

‘No regrets’: Rio Tinto’s outgoing CEO marks his scorecard

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Original article by Eric Johnston
The Australian – Page: 13 & 14 : 13-Aug-25

Rio Tinto’s head of iron ore Simon Trott will formally succeed Jakob Stausholm as CEO on 25 August. Stausholm says he is proud of what he has achieved at Rio Tinto since taking up the role in 2021; amongst other things, he addressed the resources group’s cultural issues, rebuilt trust in the company in the wake of the Juukan Gorge scandal and increased its exposure to the copper and lithium sectors. Stausholm has defended Rio Tinto’s move to ramp up exposure to lithium, arguing that it is very clear that the world needs more lithium.

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RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Seven’s profit slumps but digital offers hope

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Original article by James Madden
The Australian – Page: 17 : 13-Aug-25

Seven West Media has reported a 2024-25 statutory profit of just $17m, which is 63 per cent lower than previously. Revenue was five per cent lower at $1.4bn and underlyimg earnings were down 15 per cent to $159m, although CEO Jeff Howard notes that underlying earnings rose by six per cent in the second half. Meanwhile, the group’s 7plus digital platform recorded 26 per cent growth in revenue during 2024-25. Howard says 7plus is close to offsetting the revenue decline in Seven’s traditional broadcast TV business; he adds that although viewers will continue to switch to streaming, Seven remains committed to broadcast TV.

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SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM

Disney+ and Amazon Prime in New Zealand show powerful growth in viewership of Subscription TV services since pandemic

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

New data from Roy Morgan shows that more than 3 million New Zealanders aged 14+ (3,094,000 people) now watch Subscription TV in an average four weeks; this equates to 70.4% of all New Zealanders. This viewership represents an increase of 214,000 (+7.4%) from four years ago during the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many New Zealanders turned to streaming services while enduring extended periods of lockdown in 2020-2021. Netflix remains the clear market leader and most popular service; it is now watched by 2,292,000 people in an average four weeks, an increase of 97,000 (+4.4%) on four years ago. Netflix remains the only Subscription TV service to reach over half the population (52.2% of New Zealanders). Meanwhile, some 1,058,000 New Zealanders now watch Disney+ in an average four weeks (up 342,000 on four years ago), and 835,000 now watch Amazon Prime Video (up 522,000). Traditional Pay TV service Sky retains a wide viewership of 1,284,000 – enough for second place overall, but this is virtually unchanged from four years ago, and down by 8,000 (-0.6%) in a growing market overall.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, DISNEY+, AMAZON PRIME VIDEO, SKY NETWORK TELEVISION LIMITED – ASX SKT

Lower interest rates a welcome relief, critical banks pass on full cut

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Original article by
Australian Retailers Association – Page: Online : 13-Aug-25

Retailers have welcomed the Reserve Bank of Australia’s announcement of a 25-basis-point interest rate cut as a vital confidence boost for the sector’ recovery. The Australian Retailers Association and the National Retail Association said that lower interest rates will encourage much-needed discretionary spending. The ARA’s CEO Chris Rodwell says the two clear messages that stem from the decision are that the RBA remain open to further cuts in 2025 – given that retail growth and consumer confidence remain subdued – and it is critical that banks act now to pass on the full rate cut. Rodwell adds that a stronger Australian economic trajectory cannot happen without a retail recovery.

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AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL RETAIL ASSOCIATION LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA