Roy Morgan Poll: ALP maintains an election-winning lead, but no Budget Bounce for Albanese Government: ALP 53% cf. L-NP 47%

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

If a Federal Election were held now the ALP would be returned to Government with an increased majority with the ALP on 53% (unchanged from a week ago) ahead of the L-NP Coalition on 47% (unchanged) on a two-party preferred basis, the latest Roy Morgan survey finds. The Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating was virtually unchanged at 80.5 with only 32% (down 0.5%) of Australians saying the country is ‘going in the right direction’, compared to 51.5% (down 1%) that say the country is ‘going in the wrong direction’. This week primary support for both major parties decreased with the Coalition down 0.5% to 35% and the ALP down 1.5% to 32% after the Albanese Government delivered its pre-election Federal Budget, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton delivered the Opposition’s response, and the Federal Election was called. Support for the Greens increased 0.5% to 13% and support for One Nation was up 1.5% to 5.5%. Support for Other Parties dropped 0.5% to 4% and support for Independents was up 0.5% to 10.5%

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MORGAN POLL, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY

Albanese says federal EPA will not be same model as earlier one he promised but didn’t deliver

Original article by Dan Jervis-Bardy
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

Labor recently indicated that it will press ahead with plans to establish a federal environmental protection agency if it wins the election on 3 May. A federal EPA was part of Labor’s platform for the 2022 election, but the policy was shelved earlier in 2025 amid a pushback in Western Australia. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has advised that Labor will adopt a new model for the proposed EPA. He adds that Labor will consult widely to ensure that it gets federal environment laws right. Meanwhile, shadow environment minister, Jonno Duniam has warned that a federal EPA would result in more green lawfare and regulation, while not guaranteeing any further protection for the environment.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Australia should persist with AUKUS despite risk of US relationship ‘becoming unstuck’, former defence department secretary says

Original article by Ben Doherty
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

Dennis Richardson has told a Security and Sovereignty conference organised by former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull that Australia should stick with the $368 billion AUKUS submarine deal. Richardson, who is a former secretary of both the defence and foreign affairs departments, says this is despite the US becoming a "less reliable and a more demanding ally" under Donald Trump’s second administration. He said that acquiring nuclear submarines was in Australia’s national interest, while Turnbull told the conference that Australia’s relationship with the US had been "irrevocably altered" by the new Trump administration.

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Netflix rival Max rolls out in Australia with bold profit prediction

Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 19 : 1-Apr-25

Warner Bros Discovery’s Max streaming service debuted in an already crowded Australian market on Monday. Warner Bros Discovery executive Jean-Briac Perrette is upbeat about the outlook for the sector, contending that streaming will be a "fantastic business". Perrette expects Max to be profitable in Australia within three years, and he has not ruled out acquisitions in the local market. Much of the HBO content that was previously available on Foxtel’s Binge streaming platform will now exclusively on Max.

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WARNER BROS DISCOVERY INCORPORATED, MAX, HBO, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, BINGE

Albanese government unwilling to buy its way out of Trump tariffs

Original article by Tom Crowley, Alison Xiao
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

Trade Minister Don Farrell says the federal government is prepared for ”any outcome" when the Trump administration announces details of its reciprocal tariffs regime. Farrell adds that the government will always stand up for Australia and will never ‘trade away’ the things that make it "the best country in the world". Australia’s trade negotiators will not offer any concessions to secure a deal on tariffs, and will continue to push the case for an exemption on grounds such as the fact that US has a long-standing trade surplus with Australia. President Donald Trump has rejected suggestions that the tariffs will target 10-15 countries that have the largest trade deficits with the US, stating that the tariffs will apply to all countries.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Juukan payments stay secret

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 1-Apr-25

The Juukan Gorge Legacy Foundation has been given permission by the Australian Charities & Not-For-Profits Commission to redact most of the information from its annual accounts. The Foundation was established by Rio Tinto and the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people in 2023 as part of an agreement to remedy the iron ore miner’s destruction of Indigenous heritage at Juukan Gorge in 2020, with the Foundation receiving a multimillion-dollar payment from Rio each year. Confirming that the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission had given it permission to redact its accounts, a Foundation spokesman said it was done to "avoid pricing heritage destruction".

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JUUKAN GORGE LEGACY FOUNDATION, AUSTRALIAN CHARITIES AND NOT-FOR-PROFITS COMMISSION, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

ASX’s $42b plunge seals worst start in years

Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 1-Apr-25

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 shed 3.9 per cent during the first quarter of 2025; this represents the local bourse’s worst start to a calendar year since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. However, Australian equities have outperformed Wall Street, with the S&P 500 having shed 5.1 per cent in the first quarter and 6.3 per cent in the month of March. Meanwhile, Matthew Sherwood from Perpetual estimates that the chances of a recession is now more than 30 per cent, adding that the Trump’s administration’s impending tariff reforms will be a key driver of the global economic outlook in the near-term.

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STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT

Australian house prices hit new peak for 2025 as rate cut drives buyer demand

Original article by Cait Kelly
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

Data from CoreLogic Australia shows that house prices rose by 0.4 per cent nationwide in March; it was the second successive month of house price growth, and followed a decline of 0.5 per cent over the three months to December. Tim Lawless from CoreLogic – which is rebranding as Cotality – attributes the "pretty mild turnaround" to improved consumer sentiment in response to the Reserve Bank’s interest rate cut in February. Separate data from PropTrack shows that dwelling prices rose in every capital city in March.

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CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PROPTRACK PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

ANZ-Roy Morgan Inflation Expectations increased to 4.9% in late March – up from 4.6% for the month of February

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Mar-25

The weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan Inflation Expectations were 4.9% for the week of 17-23 March 2025; this is up 0.3% points from the month of February, following four straight weeks of increases. However, a look at monthly Inflation Expectations for February shows the measure at 4.6% for the month – a decrease of 0.4% points from January, and the lowest monthly Inflation Expectations since September 2021. Looking back over the last year, weekly Inflation Expectations have moved in a band of 4.2% to 5.3% since the start of 2024, and averaged 4.9%. The data for the Inflation Expectations series is drawn from the Roy Morgan Single Source, which has interviewed an average of around 5,300 Australians aged 14+ per month over the last decade.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence virtually unchanged at 84.2 in mid-March, with the biggest boost in Queensland

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Mar-25

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence was virtually unchanged at 84.2 in the week to 23 March. The index was unchanged in New South Wales and Victoria, but it increased the most in Queensland following the return to normal after the devastating Cyclone Alfred earlier in the month. Consumer Confidence is now 1.1 points above the same week a year ago (83.1), although it is now 2.4 points below the 2025 weekly average of 86.6. Now 21% of Australians (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 49% (up 2ppts) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 31% (unchanged) of Australians expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 32% (down 1ppt) expect to be ‘worse off’. Now 8% (unchanged) of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 32% (also unchanged) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, 26% (up 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 43% (unchanged) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

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