News live: Australia steering ‘soft landing’ on economy, IMF says; court battle begins over Coles’ ‘discounts’
IMF finds Australia managing ‘soft-landing’ on economic recovery
The International Monetary Fund released a report on Sunday saying the Australian economy was managing a “soft landing” but said inflationary pressures had “re-emerged” in recent months.
The body said the country’s economic recovery is expected to continue in the near-term but added wage growth is anticipated to moderate further, partially due to weak productivity growth. The IMF said yesterday:
Executive directors welcomed Australia’s progress toward a soft landing and internal balance, notwithstanding uncertainties regarding residual excess demand and supply capacity in the context of weak productivity growth.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmerssaid the report was generally good news for the economy, telling RN Breakfast:
It was a very positive report about Australia and about the government’s economic plan, it was a powerful endorsement. … It described our budget management as effective.
Key events
Cait Kelly
In case you missed it, NSW is getting an extra holiday this year
People in Australia’s most populous state have been granted an Anzac Day long weekend for the next two years, and could be in line for more public holidays.
The New South Wales premier, Chris Remembershas announced the state would have an extra public holiday in 2026 and 2027, when Anzac Day falls on a Saturday and Sunday.
Remembrance services are held nationwide on 25 April, but only people in Western Australia and ACT had previously been granted an additional public holiday on the following Monday.
But others said they won’t do likewise, with the governments of Victoria and Queensland declaring no such public holiday would be created.
Unlike New Year’s Day, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, there had been no additional public holidays declared in NSW when Anzac Day fell on a weekend.
Read more here:
NSW detail more charges against men accused of elderly driver scam
NSW police will lay more charges against two men accused of scamming elderly drivers in carparks across the state over multiple days in January.
Police first said last month they had arrested two men, aged 37 and 57, as part of a scam in which one of the men would allegedly approach a victim, claiming there was an issue with their car before asking them to raise the bonnet to inspect it. While the bonnet was up, another man would allegedly steal items from inside the victim’s car.
The pair were charged with 72 offences each in early January and refused bail.
Investigators now allege more offences in additional locations, including Waratah, Gundagai, Wyong and Sydney, among others. Police believe the pair came to Australia in late December, using allegedly false representations on passenger cards and visa applications.
They will lay a further 17 offences against the pair, encompassing charges of fraud, stealing, entering a vehicle without consent and making false statements to officers working under the migration at.
Police are appealing for more information about anyone who may have dealt with the men.
Patrick Commins
Treasury considering changes to Australia’s contentious tobacco excise, as calls grow for a freeze
Experts say a freeze on the federal government’s contentious tobacco excise should be considered, after the Treasury revealed it was modelling the impacts of cigarette prices on demand amid a booming black market.
Lachlan Vass, a research manager at the e61 Institute, said the Treasury’s examination of “price elasticity” and demand for tobacco would be a necessary step to costing potential reforms to the excise.
Jim Chalmersthe treasurer, and Mark Butler, the health minister, have previously rebuffed any suggestion that reducing the sky-high cost of cigarettes was the solution to curbing the black market trade, which has ballooned over the past five years and smashed a $17.8bn hole in the budget since 2020-21.
But when asked at Senate estimates last week why a cut to the excise couldn’t be considered as part of a wider strategy to curb the illegal tobacco trade, Katy Gallagherthe finance minister, left the door open to a change in excise policy.
Read more here:
Search continues for elderly man who was allegedly kidnapped by mistake
The search continues for a grandfather who was allegedly abducted by mistake in a botched underworld kidnapping, AAP reports.
The 85-year-old Sydney man, Chris Baghsarianwas alone in his North Ryde home when he was taken and bundled into dark-coloured SUV on Friday morning. Police hold grave concerns for the grandfather, who needs daily medication, after they were called to the home by neighbours who heard a commotion about 5am.
Detective Acting Supt Andrew Marks urged for the release of the elderly man:
Police consider that Mr Baghsarian was not the intended target … You have the wrong person.
Read more here:
Wildlife officials still searching for entangled humpback whale in Victoria
Victoria’s Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) is still searching for a humpback whale entangled in rope off the Gippsland coast.
The agency said the juvenile whale was first seen late Saturday by a wildlife tour boat, heading slowly south about 250 metres off the coast of Cape Wellington. The animal was seen again on Sunday morning and was described as moving “very slowly”, appearing underweight.
DEECA will send a plane up today to continue searching for the whale in hopes of providing assistance.
The agency said it is likely to be the same whale that was seen earlier this month in Jervis Bay, NSW. Members of the public who see the animal are urged to call the DEECA emergency hotline on 1300 136 017.
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IMF finds Australia managing ‘soft-landing’ on economic recovery
The International Monetary Fund released a report on Sunday saying the Australian economy was managing a “soft landing” but said inflationary pressures had “re-emerged” in recent months.
The body said the country’s economic recovery is expected to continue in the near-term but added wage growth is anticipated to moderate further, partially due to weak productivity growth. The IMF said yesterday:
Executive directors welcomed Australia’s progress toward a soft landing and internal balance, notwithstanding uncertainties regarding residual excess demand and supply capacity in the context of weak productivity growth.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmerssaid the report was generally good news for the economy, telling RN Breakfast:
It was a very positive report about Australia and about the government’s economic plan, it was a powerful endorsement. … It described our budget management as effective.
Court battle begins over Coles’ grocery prices
Jonathan Barrett
A highly anticipated federal court battle between the competition regulator and supermarket giant Coles begins today, testing allegations the retailer offered “illusory” discounts on hundreds of everyday products.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is seeking large penalties and community service orders against Coles, which, along with Woolworths, controls two-thirds of the Australian grocery market.
A similar case against Woolworths is expected to be heard at a later date.
The 10-day hearing in Melbourne will scrutinise pricing practices involving hundreds of products, from instant coffee to chocolate biscuits, over an extended period.
The regulator alleges that Coles temporarily inflated prices before marking the items as discounted under promotions like “Down Down,” in a practice known as “was/is” pricing.
Coles is defending the claims, arguing pricing was a response to increased costs from suppliers.
The case starts during a period of reigniting inflation, with groceries and other household costs rising strongly again.
Krishna Dhanji
Labor releases numbers showing budget would be $14bn worse off under Coalition
The government has released figures that, it says, show the federal budget would be $14bn worse over two years if the Coalition had won the 2025 election.
The figures released by Labor claim those budget deficits would add $22bn to gross debt over the coming decade, resulting in $8.4bn in extra interest payments, based on the Coalition’s costings that were released ahead of the election.
The Coalition’s nuclear plan is not included in the figures.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, says the numbers demonstrate Angus Taylor and the newly elected deputy leader, Jane Hume“blew up their economic credibility” during the election campaign.
Chalmers said:
Angus Taylor is the poster child for the Coalition’s economic insanity. These figures show Angus Taylor has no credibility on the economy and that’s exactly why the Liberal party is a complete bin fire.
Angus Taylor and Jane Hume blew up their election campaign, they blew up their economic credibility, and these numbers show they would have blown the budget too.
Aussie medal party continues with dual moguls bronze
Australian skier Matt Graham bounced back from individual disappointment to add another medal to the one he collected eight years ago in Pyeongchang and continue the Aussie success story at Milan-Cortina, AAP reports.
He became the country’s third moguls medallist at the Games on Sunday. It was Australia’s record-extending fifth medal of the Olympics and was hard-won given Graham’s multiple injuries that have included a fractured neck, collarbone, broken ribs and lung contusions.
Graham clawed his way on to the podium with a win over Japan’s Takuya Shimakawa in the small final, which decided the bronze medal. The Australian outscored his rival 20 to 15. The Canadian all-time great Mikaël Kingsbury won the gold medal after taking silver in the individual.
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Good morning
Good morning, and welcome to Monday. Nick Visser here to guide you through the day’s news. Here’s what’s on deck:
The federal court will hold a hearing on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) case against Coles and Woolworths today after the consumer watchdog sued the grocery giants in 2024 over allegations they misled shoppers using “illusory” discounts on hundreds of products. The hearing will take place in Melbourne, with the court noting the ACCC is seeking “a significant penalty” for the alleged breaches of consumer law.
Australia is up to five medals at the Winter Olympics in Milan after skier Matt Graham took home bronze in the new dual moguls events. “This means a lot, the other day was a bit bittersweet, coming fifth when I knew I had enough to get on the podium so today was a bit about redemption, I was fired up,” he told reporters after the achievement.
Stick with us.
